Mr Pretzel
by Writer-Of-Randomness
Summary: Embry is running. From his past, his pack, his life. He ends up in England where he finds something that he's only ever dreamed about, an imprint. Scarlett is a broke student who finds herself falling for the strange man she meets at the pretzel stand.
1. Chapter 1

**Mr Pretzel**

The sound of a hang hitting my door over and over pulled me from my dreams. Nice dreams, where I married Johnny Depp and went for a swim in a pool full of money. _Urgh, whoever woke me will pay… big time!_ I slid out from underneath the warm covers, ignoring the lazy part of me that was kicking and screaming about having to get out of bed. I mentally told her to shut the hell up and pulled on my fluffy robe before heading down the hall towards the door and the noise.

"Rent." The words were spoken before I'd even pulled the door the whole way open. I poked my head out of the door, squinting up at my landlord. He was tall, beefy; and quite frankly he was scary as hell. I groaned internally as I grabbed behind me for my bag on the table by the door and peered inside.

My job is crappy and money is always tight so when I found my purse and opened it, it was like looking into a black hole; there's nothing there. I found a small wad of cash and counted it carefully as he watched me. I had just enough for this month's rent so I handed it over reluctantly. He snatched the money from my grasp and scurried off to the next door.

I shut my door and slid the bolt back across before walking into the living room and plopping down in my battered old armchair. I emptied out the contents of my purse into my lap. I had exactly £6 and forty-six pence. I grabbed my back and dug around in it for a while until I found some more change. An extra 23 pence was added to my miniscule pile of money.

In my hand I also had an old bus ticket, my trusty lip balm and a Mr Pretzel loyalty card. A loyalty card that had all the stamps filled in too. _Hey! That means I get a free pretzel!_ I looked over at my desk and saw my unfinished essay sat on there, practically staring at me. If I didn't do it, my university professor would kill me without a doubt.

_Well, if you're going to hell you might as well take a pretzel with you. _I couldn't argue with my own knowledge so I dumped my precious little money back into my purse along with my card and went back to my bedroom. I threw on jeans and an old tank top from the back of my wardrobe before brushing my teeth and throwing my hair into a messy bun.

I pulled on my beat-up converse, tugged my green hoodie over my head, grabbed my bag and headed out of the door. I locked up my flat and walked the few metres to the bus stop. As I was waiting, I thought about how it was a lovely morning and my day might be looking up after all. And then it started raining. Fml!

I pulled my hood up and grumbled under my breath until the bus rounded the corner. I hopped on and paid my fare, sliding into a seat and pulling my hood back down before I fixed my earphones into my ears and blocked out the world to some good old Marley.

"_**Don't worry, 'bout a thing. 'Cause every little thing, is gonna be alright."**_

_Yeah thanks Bob but I'm not really convinced here._ My stop arrived and I jumped off the bus and ran into the huge shopping centre in front of me. I walked up the stairs and over to the Mr Pretzel stand. They'd just opened and I could smell the pretzels cooking, _mmmm. _

"One cinnamon pretzel please." I said, pulling one earphone out of one ear and flourishing my loyalty card. I looked up at the cashier and saw a very cute guy standing there; he gave me a very toothy smile and turned around to get my pretzel.

I couldn't help but admire his arse as I waited. It was a cute bum. He turned back around to me and I looked him up and down shamelessly, but only because I noticed him doing the same to me. He had tanned skin, dark brown shaggy hair and chocolaty coloured eyes. His features were strong and my mind just screamed _seeexxxyyyy!_

"There ya go." He said and I about dropped dead at his deep American voice. I took the pretzel from him and smiled as he took my card and checked all the stamps on it.

"So what's an American guy like you doing in England?" I asked as I leaned against the counter. He chuckled as he put the card in a drawer.

"I'm on a holiday of sorts. I needed to get away from life for a while." He replied and took a gulp from a bottle of water.

"Where are you from?" I knew I was being nosy but he humoured me.

"Forks, Washington."

"Why are you working at a pretzel stand?"

"Because I really like pretzels." He laughed and I laughed with him.

"You and me both my friend." I said and he laughed again. I smiled and waved at him before I walked away. _Should have asked for a date idiot!_ My mind screamed at me.

I ate my pretzel and was about to throw the napkin away when I noticed the words **Joe's Café 7pm** and some numbers underneath. I laughed to myself and pulled my phone from my pocket and texted the number.

**Cheeky :P **

There was a reply within seconds.

_**That's me :D Will you come?**_

I laughed.

**Sure. I'm Scarlett by the way **

I tucked the napkin into my bag as I walked the half-mile to work.

_**Hey Scarlett I'm Embry. See you 7 :)**_

Ah Mr Pretzel, I love you.

**A/n. Well hellooo there. I changed my penname from Luvjazzyhales4evs13 to this so if you're wondering who the hell this is… it's me! Hi! I seriously was looking through my very empty purse and found my Mr Pretzel loyalty card (which isn't full by the way) and decided to write this. It's supposed to be a one shot but I might continue it if you guys like it so please review and tell me what you think :D**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	2. Chapter 2

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 2

I practically skipped my way to work and got some strange looks from the customers sitting at the tables as I burst through the doors of The Cat and Fiddle Inn singing 'I feel good'. I danced my way up to the bar and ducked underneath it to throw my bag and coat in the back room.

"I feel good, na-na na-na-na na, I knew that I would now!" I wiggled my hips as I tied my apron around my waist. My crappy job as a waitress suddenly seemed better and brighter today. The Cat and Fiddle Inn is a pub but doubles up as a café before 4pm and a bar and restaurant after four.

"You may feel good missy, but some of us aren't so keen on Monday morning's thank you very much. What's got you in such a cheery mood anyway?" Liam walked over to the bar with a couple of empty plates and slumped into an empty stool. Liam, my weird friend, was medium build and height, he had black hair and green eyes and hated weekdays with a passion . He helped get me this job and took the same classes as me in University.

"I got a hot date tonight and nothing is gonna bring me down." I grinned at him and took a young couple's order as he scowled at me before a smile tugged at his lips.

"Oh yeah? Did you finish that essay?" he asked and I groaned. I walked over to him and smacked him upside the head; he backed away with his hands held up in surrender.

"Gee thanks for dragging a girl right back down to rock bottom you meanie-face." I glared at him but he just burst out laughing and tousled my hair, making me bat his hands away and fix my hair quickly.

"Hahahaha you sound so childish when you say that." He chuckled and I huffed and pointed out that I was, in fact, only 20, so I could still act childish if I wanted to. Just then the boss came out from under his rock- office- and we quickly shut up and got to work. I walked over to my first table and was just about to open my mouth when a hand clasped my shoulder.

"Scarlett. May I speak with you?" That was my boss, Mr McFirth. Always serious. Always annoying. Always wanting something. I sighed, shot an apologetic glance towards the table and let him pull me to a corner of the Pub.

Mr McFirth was a fairly tall man with neatly trimmed brown hair, cold and unforgiving eyes and a mouth that never smiled. And with his big build, he looked like the kind of guy that you did not wanna mess with. He turned towards me and sighed like me being here was inconveniencing him. _Yeah, sorry for working long hours and taking hardly any money from you._

"I need you to do something for me tonight." He said and I groaned internally. He _always_ wanted something… douche. I raised my eyebrows in a half-hearted attempt to seem like I cared about what he wanted, which I really didn't but he paid my wages so I kind of had to be. He didn't notice my lack of enthusiasm at all; either that or he knew that I'd do whatever it was whether I wanted to or not. But only because I really needed my job.

"Chrissie and I are going out tonight. I need you to watch Sibby." He finished and looked at me for a second before he started to walk away. Chrissie was his wife, petite and sweet was her characteristics. Everybody at the Pub loved her and – wait, what? Sibby? Oh no, no way! Tonight? Oh hell no way!

"Hey, wait up!" I called and jogged across the floor to reach him as he stopped and slowly turned around to face me, "Look I can't baby sit tonight, I have a-" I didn't even get to finish my sentence because he held his hand up and my mouth just shut automatically. He glared at me and I knew I'd be in trouble.

"Look Scarlett Johnson, I don't care what plans you have for tonight. If you want to keep your job here, you'll watch Sibby tonight. There are a lot of people who would be only too happy for your job, and even more that have less attitude. 7:30 on the dot." He snapped, his eyes just daring me to argue. When I didn't, he turned on his heel and stomped off back to his office. He was right, he'd have no problem finding a replacement for me and he used that fact to his advantage.

_Dammit!_ I sighed and dragged my feet as I walked back over to my abandoned table and took the angry customers orders, giving up on my chance of a tip and on my good mood. I took my break an hour later and slid into a stool at the bar, resting my head in my hands. I pulled my phone out of my pocked and sent a quick but depressive text.

**No go on the date tonight. Got to baby sit for the boss :(**

I walked around to the other side of the bar and poured myself a coke as I waited for a reply. Urgh, I hated my boss! And his bratty daughter was even worse. Sibby was 4ft of pure evil in an angel's costume. Blue eyes and horns hidden underneath her blonde bunches. My phone vibrated on the counter and I picked it up to open the text.

_**That sucks. Want some company? **_

I debated a little in my head about whether it was a good idea to bring Embry baby sitting with me. Especially with my boss being the grump that he is, but Chrissie would probably stick up for me. And I'd have someone to help me with Sibby which is always a plus.

**Sure. I get off work at 5, we could go out first if you want?**

I smiled to myself absentmindedly as I sipped my drink. Liam glanced over at me and tapped his watch as a sign that I should get back to work and I held a couple of fingers up as in I needed two more minutes. He shrugged and took a plate off a table and walked away. My phone buzzed again.

_**Love to :D**_

I smiled and texted back quickly before I hurried back to work.

**I work at the Cat and Fiddle Inn. Meet me 5. **

I walked back around the bar to the customer side and took some more orders on a pad of paper, avoiding flirty glances and even dodging the grabby hand of a senile granddad.

_**Can't wait xx**_

A big Cheshire cat grin spread across my face as I took in the kisses. _Awwwwww!_ But then I remembered that we were baby sitting Sibby tonight.

_Embry, I hope you're ready for hell._

**A/n. Oh my fluffy-yellow-gloves I am so sorry that this has taken so long! I've had my physics and chemistry exam, and I've just done my maths exam last week and I've taken on a new Astronomy course so homework has been manic. Not to mention I've had to stay late at school EVERY night 'cause my deadline for Art is looming (I'm bricking it!) so this story has been a little low on my priority list. But I'm starting work on the next chapter right now. It was gonna be longer but I thought that getting this chapter out- short as it may be- would be better than prolonging it even more. **

**Oh and sorry for this long a/n. Pretty please review and bring a smile to my face. Comments? Suggestions? Constructive criticism? All is welcome :)**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	3. Chapter 3

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 3

5 o'clock rolled around far too slowly for my liking. My hair was frizzed, my back was sore and I was seriously about to give this guy I was waiting on a piece of my mind.

"So anyways I was wondering if you wanna come out with me and the guys to a party. You should probably say yes seeing as all the girls fawn all over me and you're not exactly gonna get a better offer sweet cheeks…" my mind blocked out his annoyingly arrogant voice as I tried to suppress a yawn. All I'd asked was if they needed anything else, I mean jeez! I suddenly felt a hand on my waist.

"Hey," Embry's deep voice drifted into my ears and my mind cheered, "Are these guys bothering you?" he asked, glaring at the guys. The arrogant one was pretty muscled but he was nothing compared to Embry. He sized him up for a minute before deciding that he probably didn't want to have to ask his parents for another nose job and shrank back in his seat. I smiled at shook my head at him before snatching the bill with the money off the table and walking away, pulling Embry behind me.

"Thanks for saving me back there." I said and he smiled at me, his eyes twinkling. I felt a slight blush creep into my cheeks as I grinned back at him like an idiot before composing myself and hiding my head behind my loose hair as I rung up the cash register, willing my blood to stop flowing into my cheeks. It didn't work.

"No problem, I could have kicked their asses for ya you know." He leaned against the bar and I blushed a little bit more at his offer. That was kinda sweet in a slightly violent way, _meh, take what you can get_.

"Haha no thanks, you'd probably be kicked out and I'd be in trouble. Just let me get my coat and we can go." I said back to him before ducking into the back room. I quickly switched my apron for my coat and bag and was about to rush back through the door when I caught sight of myself in the mirror. I was sporting a Cruella DeVille look with a bunch of multi-coloured pens sticking out at various angles. And a very hot guy had just witnessed this mess that I fondly like to call my hair.

"7:30, don't be late." McFirth ordered as he walked past me, not even looking away from his newspaper. _Jerk._ I fixed my hair the best I could and took a deep breath before walking back out. I took a good look at Embry as I walked, taking in his appearance properly this time. Even in simple jeans and a deep blue sweater, he made my face flush and my brain explode.

He caught sight of me and flashed me a million watt smile before standing up and giving me a flourishing bow, all the while with the same grin on his face, before offering me his arm. I bit my lip shyly as I took it and he led me out of the pub and down the street, proclaiming that he had found the perfect restaurant for us. I had to laugh at his antics because he accented his words with big hand gestures.

After a while, my breath shortened and my chest tightened from trying to keep up with Embry's long-legged pace. He seemed to pick up on this after a short time and slowed down dramatically, slinging his arm around my shoulders as we walked in comfortable silence. We walked down another two streets before we finally came to a cosy-looking restaurant by the name of "Bon Appetite!" He led me inside and we were seated immediately, the waiter bringing us menu's and water and then bumping fists with Embry before dashing off to wait some other table.

"You know him?" I asked as I shrugged my jacket off and slung it on the back of my chair. I studied the menu whilst glancing up at Embry through my lashes as I did so.

"Yeah, he's my roommate." He laughed as he too poured over the menu. His friend came back a few minutes later to take our orders, Embry ordered the biggest steak on the menu and looked slightly shocked but quite pleased when I ordered a large lasagne.

"What?" I asked as I caught him staring at me and grinning as I took another sip of water. He shrugged,

"Nothing, it's just not many girls would order real food. I thought you chicks lived off salad and diet pills." He said so nonchalantly that I almost spat my water everywhere from laughing but I managed to contain myself. Mostly. When I'd composed myself, I responded.

"That's normally right I guess but I'm not like that. I love food, I'm even taking a culinary course at university." I said, resting my chin on my hands as I studied him with fascination while his eyes sparkled with interest and he leant his elbows on the table as if waiting to be told a thrilling tale.

"Really? That's so cool! So I'm guessing you want to be a chef?" he asked, I laughed and told him yes and no.

"I want to cook, but I don't want to be anyone's second. I want to be my own boss." I answered and he responded instantly with, "Well well, Miss Independent."

"Yeah, when I was young, my parents owned the cutest little coffee shop ever. They loved being their own bosses and I guess I just learnt from their example." I said, smiling to myself as I remembered the wonky sign and how the place always smelt of coffee and my Mother's carrot cake.

"Owned? As in past tense?" he probed gently and my body tensed up, I sighed softly and took a sip of my water, nice and slow, before answering.

"I don't really like to talk about it." I practically whispered, looking down at the table cloth and playing with a napkin. He reached over and gently took my hand and, strangely, I relaxed at his touch. He didn't press the subject, instead he changed it to how terrible the English weather is and I was giggling at his jokes in minutes.

"You do realise that I know absolutely nothing about babysitting, right?" he asked as we walked up the drive to the home of my boss. Dinner had been great and Embry refused to let me pay the bill, I argued with him even though I didn't really have the money to pay anyway but the man was just too chivalrous.

"You'll be fine, don't worry about it." I patted his arm comfortingly and he grabbed my hand as we continued walking up the path towards the front door. Right before I knocked on the door, we heard a crash coming from within the house.

"Got any advice for me?" he asked, looking reasonably scared. I laughed and hugged him, after I pulled away I thought I saw shock on his face but he composed himself so quickly that I couldn't be sure.

"Duck and cover. And whatever you do, do not be fooled by the angelic smile of a demon. Are you sure you still want to do this?" I asked him warily and his face turned suddenly from solemn to very cocky.

"Bring it."

**A/n. Okay, hands up who hates me? I'm sorry! I had exams and sickness and fights and sooo much drama! But… I am on my Easter Holiday for two weeks so I plan to get a lot of writing done. In fact I'm gonna write half the next chapter right now and I promise I'll have it to you by Friday… hopefully… :D Please review guys, I'll write you a one-shot with whatever pairings you want or I'll give you a character in the story if you do. Yes people, I am resorting to bribery. **

**The next chapter will be longer, I promise! Peace out guys!**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	4. Chapter 4

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 4

"Absolutely not!" Mr McFirth yelled, his face going a very unhealthy shade of purple. Obviously he was not keen on the idea of Embry helping me baby sit. "And further more, you shouldn't come asking me for favours when you're already late! It's 31 minutes past seven. I said seven-thirty!"

"But technically you've just spent a minute yelling so it was pretty much seven-thirty when we…" I trailed off when I saw the murderous look on his face. In that very same moment, Chrissie walked by and, being the angel that she is, intervened.

"Darling, the poor girl obviously had plans with this boy tonight which you've interrupted so leave them be. It's nice to meet you Embry dear, you two be good and remember-" she said but I cut in before she finished.

"Bed at half past eight, don't forget the night light and keep the cookie jar hidden." I said and she smiled at me, hugging me and then dragging her husband out of the door before he could even open his mouth to protest. Embry stood staring at the door for a few seconds after they'd left.

"How does a guy as sullen and mean as that get a woman so sweet?" he asked and I shrugged before removing my jacket and hanging it on the hooks by the door, Embry followed suit. I walked through the house slowly, knowing that Sibby liked to play her usual game of 'Catch me before I wreck the house', a game that she seemed to adore but I didn't like so much.

"Sibby, come here." I called out in a sing-song voice and heard a small snigger coming from the living room. I walked through the door and was greeted by a cushion being thrown at my head and the devil itself yelling, "Say please!" I dodged the cushion and braved it across the minefield of mangled toys to get to her. She liked to mutate her Barbie's.

Just as she prepared to pelt me with marbles, two big hands lifted her up and away from the makeshift weapons. She turned to yell at the person but her angry face dissolved into one of wonder as she faced Embry, who must have snuck around the side of the room whilst Sibby's attention was focused on me.

"Hi, you're Sibby?" he asked and she nodded, gleeful that he knew her name, "hey, I'm Embry. I'm here to help baby-sit you with the lovely Scarlett." He smiled over at me and I grinned back as I picked up any toys that could be used as weapons and but them back in her box. Meanwhile, Sibby had put her hands on her hips and scrunched up her face.

"I am not a baby and I do not want to be sat on!"

"Of course not! You're a young woman, perhaps a princess?" she grinned and nodded at his words, "and no one would ever sit on you milady." He set her down and did an over-the-top bow to her. Her smile got to breaking point and she grabbed his hand.

"Are you my prince charming?" she asked in her angel voice, batting her eyelashes and twirling her fairy princess dress. Embry looked quite uncomfortable.

"Erm, I'm a little bit big to be your prince charming. How about I be your loyal servant instead?" he asked and she thought for a while before nodding and pulling him to the floor and messing with his ear-length hair.

"How old are you?" she asked and when he replied that he was twenty-one, she gasped and looked at me, "Scarlett that's the same age as you… well almost. Scarlett is twenty but she's not as cool as you. I'm almost eight and my party will be-" She kept chattering to him and I rolled my eyes, tuning out her usual jabber. He commented on what she was saying, all the while pulling funny faces at me and occasionally wincing when she pulled his hair. After I while, she gave me the job of being her assistant and I sat on the floor, dutifully passing her scrunchies and hair clips that she placed in Embry's hair.

"Hey Sib, I think it's time for bed." I said, pointing at the clock which read almost nine o' clock. She looked up, surprised that she'd been talking for so long and Embry offered to put her to bed, which made Sibby nod her head so violently that her bunches flew around. She was about to run upstairs when she stopped dead.

"Wait! Scarlett has to brush my hair!" she threw her hairbrush at me and plopped herself down in my lap. I shook my head in a dismissive motion and removed the elastic bands from her hair before running the brush through her blonde curls. I noticed Embry watching me, but I just smiled and concentrated on the task at hand. After I'd brushed and braided her hair, she jumped up and grabbed Embry's hand and pulled him up from the armchair before running back over to me to kiss my cheek quickly.

Then she dragged him upstairs and I listened from the floor as she proudly told him all about her bedroom and then ordered him to stand outside the door while she changed into her pj's. When she told him he could come back in, I moved to sit on the stairs to listen to them.

"Are you an alien?" she asked and I heard his low rumble of laughter.

"No, why do you ask?"

"Because you talk funny and you're just too cute."

"Haha thanks, and you're cute too kid."

"Really?" I could hear the smile in her voice, she seriously loved him.

"Of course!"

"Do you think Scarlett is cute too?" she asked and my breath stopped in my throat.

"I think she's really pretty. Can you keep a secret? I kinda like her." He said and butterflies went crazy in my stomach and I couldn't stop myself from smiling.

"Oh. Well she likes you too."

"How do you know, squirt?" he asked and obviously tickled her because I could hear her shrieks, when he stopped she answered him.

"I just know these things." She said nonchalantly and he laughed.

"If you say so. Goodnight kiddo." He said and I jumped off the stair and walked back into the living room to sit on the sofa so it would look like I wasn't listening in. A few seconds later I heard his footsteps on the stairs. He came through the doorway, saw me, and sat down next to me.

"She's asleep." He stated before running his hand through his hair. He groaned when his fingers found the hair accessories. He started trying to pull them out.

"They're so sexy Embry!" I giggled and he rolled his eyes at me, wincing as he yanked the clips out. I sat up and batted his hands away, removing them swiftly and gently. He muttered a thank you and I smiled at him. I leaned over him slightly to place the clips and scrunchies on the side table and he caught hold of a lock of my hair that had fallen out of my bun and played with it when I'd sat back.

"Did you mean what you said? To Sibby I mean." I blurted out before I could stop myself. _Way to go, Miss Subtle!_

"Which part? The part where I said you were pretty or where I admitted I liked you?" he asked and a blush began to creep up into my cheeks.

"Both." I replied and he smiled, leaning into me and placing his lips at my ear, his breath tickling my earlobe.

"Suppose I did mean them, what then?" he whispered and I couldn't stop the little shiver that ran up my spine. He smiled against my skin and I knew he was enjoying this.

"Then I'd have to tell you that I like you too." I said, feeling a little dazed. He leaned back a little to look at me and I saw his eyes sparkle. He reached a hand up to brush some hair back behind my ear.

"Good, I was hoping you'd say that." He said softly.

"I shouldn't trust you." I said, immediately regretting it.

"Why not?" he asked, genuinely confused. I thought I saw a glimmer of hurt in his eyes, but once again, it was gone before I could be sure.

"Because I barely know you, and I don't trust easily." I answered honestly.

"So you don't trust me?"

"I do trust you. I'm just saying that I shouldn't, that's what makes it so strange. I just met you today and I feel like I've known you all my life." I admitted. _Great, now he's gonna think that you're a freak._

"I feel the same way. I…" he trailed off and looked down. My curiosity burned.

"You what?" I asked when he didn't complete the sentence. His eyes found mine again and I could tell he was a little nervous.

"I really want to kiss you Scarlett." He said and the smallest blush appeared on his cheek, no doubt nothing compared to my tomato-red cheeks.

"We shouldn't. We hardly know each other." I blurted out more reasons, all the while leaning closer towards him, "we don't- oh, just kiss me." He grinned before closing the space between us and pressing his lips gently to mine. At that very moment, my body began working against my brain. My arms wrapped around his shoulders and I felt one of his hands at the small of my back whilst the other one remained at my cheek. After what seemed like forever, but was definitely not long enough, he pulled away and rested his forehead against mine.

"You're right, we hardly know each other. I want to know all about Scarlett, probably staring with your whole name." he grinned and I gave a small smile in return, nodding. He settled back against the sofa and put his arm around my shoulder, pulling me in to lean against him.

"My name is Scarlett Marie Johnson and I'm twenty years old. I'm originally from the Yorkshire countryside." I said, snuggling a little further into his chest, marvelling at how warm he was.

"Why did you leave?" he asked and I immediately responded with the simplest and most believable response.

"To go to university."

"When do you finish school?" I knew right then that he was going to ask a huge amount of questions.

"Five weeks. Well, if I ever get my final essay finished." I laughed a little.

"What do you plan to do when you after that?" he persisted.

"I'm gonna go someplace far away from England and work in a restaurant until I have enough money for a business of my own. Then I'm gonna move to a little town where I can open a diner and use all my own recipe's." I smiled at my dream, the same dream that I've had since I was five.

"Why a little town?"

"Because I wanna have one of those café's where I'll know all the regulars everyone knows about my famous chocolate cake." My smile got a little bit wider as I thought more about it.

"Famous chocolate cake?" I could almost hear his raised eyebrows in the tone of his voice.

"Oh yeah, it's to die for. I'll make you one sometime." I said and he hummed an 'mmmm yes please'. "So tell me something about you?" I asked.

"I'm Embry Call, no middle name. I'm from a reservation called LaPush in Washington and I'm a – Sagittarius." He stumbled a little and I frowned in confusion for a second before shrugging.

We talked for hours from our first words to school plays to what we did last week. We talked about our families a little bit but only in anecdotes from when were small. I found it slightly odd that he wasn't talking about his family but I didn't judge, I didn't want to talk about mine either. I promised myself that I wouldn't go back down that road.

After a while, we heard the door open and Mr and Mrs McFirth walked through the door. Chrissie sent her husband straight upstairs, telling him he was a drunken idiot. She paid us both even though we protested a little and told us to get home safely.

"I'll walk you home." Embry said and I nodded, thanking him. I was glad he offered because my neighbourhood wasn't the best and he looked like a bodyguard. I intertwined my fingers with his and we walked hand in hand down the dark and deserted street.

My flat was only a few minutes away from the McFirth household and we were at my door in no time. I hugged him tightly and a bubbly feeling took over me as I felt his arms wrap around my waist.

"Thank you for helping me tonight." I mumbled into his ear, not wanting to let go.

"Thanks for texting my number from the napkin." He whispered in my ear.

"Is this magic?" I asked softly, not really believing that I could feel so safe around a man that I'd only met a few hours ago. Not believing that, even after all these years of being so guarded, that I could trust him so fast.

"Maybe it is." He answered, pulling me from my thoughts with a feather-light kiss. I smiled against his lips and tried to pull away to tell him goodnight but his arms tightened slightly on my waist as the kiss deepened. He wasn't holding me tight enough that I couldn't get away, just enough so that I could feel close to him.

"I should go." He said when he finally pulled away, breathing heavily.

"Yeah, I have class early tomorrow." I said breathlessly. I kissed his cheek and turned to open my door.

"Can I take you out to lunch tomorrow?" He asked, sounding a little nervous as if I'd reject him.

"Sure! I'm free between 1 and 2." His smile looked bigger than a Cheshire cat.

"Great, meet me at Joe's Café like we planned originally. They make great cheeseburgers. Goodnight, Scarlett." He kissed my cheek before bouncing down the hallway. I called a 'goodbye' after him and rolled my eyes before entering my flat and crawling straight into bed, promising myself that I'd finish that essay first thing tomorrow even though I knew I was lying to myself.

That night I dreamt of Embry and, strangely, over-sized wolves.

**A/n. Hey guys! I told ya that I'd have another chapter by Friday. Thank you to **..LoVe **who was my ONLY reviewer so far. C'mon guys, you're making me depressed here! I'll even be nice if you flame me, promise! And I know that people are reading this 'cause there's traffic on this story and people have put this story on their Favourite's and on Story Alert so I know you're out there! Please guys, feedback would be good. **

**Also, I know it might seem like I'm going a little slow at the mo but that's because I wanted to emphasise this day and I know it might seem like they're moving a little fast as they've only just met each other but I'm trying to get this story moving so I can get to the good stuff. Urgh, I hate beginnings! It'll get good soon people, I promise! Peace out!**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	5. Chapter 5

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 5

_Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in_- Robert Frost.

_Two Months Later_

I rolled over in my bed and met Embry's arms. We'd been dating for two blissful months now and I felt like he knew me better than anyone, and vice versa. The only thing that played on my mind was that I hadn't really discussed my family with him but he hadn't pressed the matter so I decided to tell him when I was ready.

"Morning." I mumbled into his chest as his arms wrapped lazily around me. He'd been sleeping at my place since his roommate kicked him out two weeks ago. Needless to say, our relationship was a lot further along than a few weeks ago.

"Good morning to you." He said, his voice husky from sleeping. He yawned loudly before stretching and kissing me on the nose. I gave a contented sigh and snuggled further under the covers, not wanting to get out of bed on this Saturday morning.

I was officially a college graduate with a degree in Culinary Arts and that morning, I had no work to go to. I could stay in bed with my boyfriend all day if I wanted to. Life was good.

_Buzz!_ Embry's phone vibrated against the side table and he picked it up, looked at the screen and groaned before getting out of bed and leaving the room to answer it. _Well there go my plans._

"Look Sam, I don't care if-" Embry started, sounding angry. Whoever this Sam person was, they'd obviously cut him off mid-sentence. I crept over to the doorway to listen, even though I knew I should give him some privacy.

"I'm not being childish! I'm happy here! For the first time since it happened, I'm happy." His voice was defiant like he was a soldier rebelling to his General. _Since what happened?_ I heard noise coming from the phone, whoever was on the other line was obviously shouting but I couldn't make out what they were saying.

"Fine." Embry said in a defeated voice and hung up. He barged back into the bedroom before I even had time to blink. He swung the door open with such force that I almost fell over, but he barely acknowledged me as he began stuffing his clothes into a beat-up duffel bag.

"Is everything okay, babe?" I asked hesitantly.

"Do I look okay to you?" he turned to look at me, his expression was dark, "heard everything okay, did you? Do you always listen in on peoples conversations?" he snapped and turned back to his packing.

"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make you angry. You just sounded sad and I got curious." I mumbled, biting my fingernails. I didn't hear him cross the room, but a few moments later I was in his arms and he was rubbing my back soothingly.

"No, it's okay. I just- I have to go home." I looked up at him and his sad brown eyes held mine.

"Home? Like America?"

"Yes. Back to the gloom of LaPush." His voice was smooth but cold, as if he'd cut off all his emotions. He tried to pull away but I wrapped my arms firmly around his neck and pulled him closer to me.

"Do you have to go?" I whispered in his ear and his arms tightened around me. I melted in his warm embrace as I felt his heart beat steadily against mine.

"Come with me!" I pulled away from him slightly to look at his face, his eyes were sparkling and he had an eager expression on his face.

"Huh?" Was all I could manage to choke out. Go with him? To America? Leave my whole life for a guy I met two months ago?

"Come home with me Scar! You'll love it there, I promise you. There's tree's and a beach and some really great views and-"

"Woah woah woah, slow down Embry. You're asking me to just drop everything and run away with you?" I cut him off and took a step back, running my fingers through my hair like I always did when I was stressed out.

"Well you're always saying that you'd like to get out of England and there's nothing tying you down here. What's the big deal?" he was truly confused as to why I was so upset.

"_What's the big deal?_ Jesus Embry, don't you get it? This is my home, I've lived here since forever; not all of us can just hop on a plane and go running away to another country when we feel like it!"

"Oh, I get it! Just because I had to get some time away, suddenly I'm irresponsible and immature, is that it! I left for a good reason Scarlett!" I'd raised my voice when I'd spoke but he was full on yelling now and I'd be lying if I said that it didn't scare me a little bit, but damn if I was backing down now.

"No, that's not what I meant at all; stop trying to twist my words around! And if it's such a good reason, then why the hell can't you just tell me?" I ground my teeth together as I felt my face turning red.

"Ya know, maybe I would if you'd stop keeping secrets from me too. I'm not the only one who isn't sharing their past so take a good look in the mirror before you judge me, 'kay?" he turned back to his packing and I just stood and watched him like an idiot.

"Maybe it's good that you're leaving. I already trusted you more than I should, I knew it was only a matter of time before you left." I said in a small voice before turning around to leave the room; a hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, spinning me back around. He backed me against the wardrobe, placing a hand either side of my face.

"Who says how much you're supposed to trust someone? Do you get like a limit or something? It's not like I want to leave Scarlett, but people back home need me. I want you to come with me, but it's your choice. I won't force you." His breath fanned over my face as he spoke softly, making sure I took in every word. I opened my mouth to speak but he cut me off again.

"I think I'm falling for you, Scar. I'm falling hard and I really want this to lead somewhere. Tell me you feel it too." He leaned in closer, if that were possible. Alarm bells were going off in my head, screaming at me that I need to get out, but my body was frozen.

"I can't." I whispered and watched in horror as his face fell dramatically. His hands dropped and he moved away to grab his bag before he made his way to the front door, I followed him like a little puppy.

"Embry, I-" I began to say but he crossed the room in an instant and pressed his lips to mine passionately, trying to express everything in that one last kiss.

"Don't," he murmured, brushing a stray hair back from my face and I closed my eyes, "goodbye Scarlett." I felt his lips brush against mine so softly I barely felt them.

I felt the warmth leave me and when I opened my eyes a few seconds later, I was alone in my living room. The emptiness consumed me, pressing against my chest and making it hard to breathe.

A choked sob escaped my lips as I sank to the floor, my arms wrapped around myself in a vain attempt to make myself warm. A single, fat tear rolled down my cheek as a revelation hit me.

I wasn't falling for Embry.

I'd already fallen.

Hard.

**A/n. I'm SOOOO sorry! I've been so busy with revision and personal issues so I regret to say that this story has been pretty low on my priority list. But I promise I'll try and make some time for it. I've had some serious writers block too, I knew how I wanted this chapter to go but I couldn't put all that emotion into words, I hope I've done it justice. This chapter was also going to be longer but I thought that it needed to be in two parts, but I'll write it soon I swear. Really swear this time too!**

**What did you all think? Any ideas on what's going to happen? Let me know because reviews make me happy and please let me now your ideas or thoughts. I strive on your opinions, my lovely readers!**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	6. Chapter 6

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 6

I don't really know how long I sat there, engulfed in the vast nothingness that Embry left behind. I looked down and saw that he'd left one of his shirts on the floor, just a plain black tee to anybody else but to me, it was heaven. I scrabbled to pick it up and threw it on, curling up into a ball on the floor and breathing in his scent.

"Black isn't really your colour, you know." Said a sarcastic voice from the doorway, I looked up sharply and saw Liam standing there. Disappointment shot through me like a bullet that it wasn't Embry but I already knew I'd burned that bridge.

"Fuck off." I muttered loud enough for him to hear, my voice thick with tears. He blatantly ignored me, as usual. _Ignorant jerk._

"You should change those locks too; anybody could just walk in and see you having a breakdown. And that's something you might wanna keep private." He took in the image of me curled up in the middle of the floor and rolled his eyes.

"He left." I said plainly, know that was what he was waiting for. He sighed and scooped me up from the floor, setting me down on the sofa and holding me gingerly while I cried. Liam wasn't very big on affection but I appreciated his efforts. His phone buzzed after a few minutes and he glanced at it.

"Flight 902 to Seattle at 12:50." He blurted out and I lifted my head from his chest to stare at him bleary-eyed.

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" I asked, praying he would just shut up.

"Embry called me and told me to come over after he left. I asked him to give me the flight details for you." He jumped up and walked into my room, I heard him rummaging around in the drawers for a minute.

"No way Liam." I shouted to him, crossing my arms as he walked back out. He threw a pair of jeans and a shirt at my head, I caught them and shot him a glare.

"Go, get dressed. Get your shit packed and get the hell out of here."

"What's the point?" I asked and he marched right over, picked me up and shook the hell out of me.

"Because you have to take a chance, you're not the one who died Scarlett; stop acting like you had your life taken away too. There's nothing left for you here." I recoiled at his words and he shot me and apologetic glance, _too harsh._

"Don't bring her into this." I snapped and he held his hands up in surrender before grabbing my duffel bag and began cramming stuff inside it.

"You have to let go sooner or later. You have to tell someone; maybe he's the one you're supposed to tell." He said absent-mindedly and he continued packing my limited belongings.

"I told you, didn't I?" I shot back and he shrugged.

"Technically, you had no choice since I've been your best friend since we were toddlers and you couldn't really hide it from me." I loved Liam like a brother, but sometimes his logic was too annoying, especially when he was right.

"I'm scared." I whispered and he grabbed me up in a big hug, squeezing me tightly.

"You'd be stupid if you weren't, but doesn't that make it worth taking a chance on?" I pulled back and smiled, he was right. I had to take a chance for once in my life. I kissed his cheek quickly before running to the bathroom to get dressed.

I brushed my hair as fast as humanly possible and knotted it into a thick braid down my back. I brushed my teeth while trying to dress at the same time which went a little disastrously but ten minutes later I emerged looking almost normal.

I scooped up all my bathroom stuff and stuffed it into my bad that Liam had ready. I looked around and saw that he'd packed everything, which wasn't much. Just my clothes, some books, my important documents and my limited jewellery; and now my toiletries.

"I called ahead and booked you a seat." He grinned and I wrapped my arms around him, giving him a sloppy kiss on the cheek.

"Great! How much do I owe you?" I asked and he shook his head.

"Nothing, it's on me. Think of it as a trade, you get your ticket… and I get your flat. Deal?" he looked at me through his lashes and a giggled, nodding so hard that my braid bounced.

"I can't believe I'm doing this!" my eyes widened at my own words as I realised I was leaving my whole world behind to follow a guy halfway across the world. He kissed my nose before handing me the bag.

"So go, before you come to your senses." He pushed me out of the door and waved as I practically dived down the stairs. As soon as I got out of the door, I realised luck just might be on my side today; someone was just getting out of a taxi outside of the building so I hopped right in.

"Hey sugar, you can't do that. I gotta go back to the station, you gotta call." He cabbie turned around to lecture me and that's when I caught sight of the time. _11:45_

"Damn it! Look mate, my flight check-in is in five minutes and if I don't make it then the guy of my dreams is gonna leave forever." I pleaded and his eyes flickered for a second before he sneered at me.

"Am I supposed to believe that bullshit?" he asked sceptically.

"Not really, but it's true. Look, how about I pay you double?" I leaned forward, _c'mon luck, don't fail me now._

"Well… I could get into trouble for this…" he stroked his beard thoughtfully and I shuddered a little.

"Fine, triple." I sighed and he grinned before starting the car, "But step on it!" he shrugged and nodded. I barked the destination at him before slumping back in my chair.

It was only a few minutes to the airport but it felt like a lifetime. If I missed check in then I was doomed, my relationship was doomed; I was doomed. I stared out of the window and watched the world whiz past, completely oblivious to all the chaos rattling through my mind and the drama that is my life.

"56 pounds then please, love." He smirked, turning around in his seat as I groaned and fished around in my purse for the money.

"This is all I have." I thrust the money at him and was about to jump out of the car when he grabbed my wrist.

"Hey lady, there's barely forty-five here and you promised me triple." He scowled at me and I felt like screaming.

"See here buddy, I'm about to potentially make the worst or best choice of my life by jumping on this plane and you're badgering me over a few measly quid when I've already paid you way more than I should have? Get the hell off me you creep!" I raised my voice and he dropped my hand, shocked at my response. I took my chance and hopped out of the car with my bags, racing into the airport.

It only took me a few seconds to reach reception and mere minutes to find the right check-in. I got to the desk just as she was checking the last passenger and breathed a sigh of relief as I waited for my turn. I handed her my passport and when through the necessary procedures before walking over to where everyone else that was going to be boarding my plane were sat. I scanned the rows of seats quickly and found Embry in next to no time at all; he was faced away from me hunched over looking at something.

"Hello, stranger." I said quietly as I walked up behind him. He jumped to his feet as quick as lightening and spun around, shock and confusion in his expression.

"Scarlett, what the hell are you doing here?" he asked, baffled.

"Taking a chance." I replied before throwing my arms around him and kissing him hard. His arms came around me as he swung me around, laughing against my lips.

"I'm so glad you changed your mind." He was smiling so hard I thought he'd break his face and I couldn't help but smile back, it was infectious.

"I love you." I whispered and his eyes widened before he kissed me passionately, hugging me tighter than before.

"I love you too baby." He whispered back and we giggled like it was some childish secret. I buried my face in his chest and inhaled his scent of forest and something I couldn't put my finger on. If warmth could be a smell, that would be it.

"Was it Liam that told you where I was?" he asked and I nodded as we sat down, our hands clasped tightly. Over the next hour, we talked about little things, just happy to be in each others company.

"Hey, Embry?" I was leaning on his chest as he drew lazy circles on my palm with his fingertips.

"Yeah?" his chest vibrated as he talked and I smiled in contentment before remembering my train of thought.

"Where will we stay? I mean, if you want me to stay with you…" I trailed off, hoping the answer was good. He laughed in response.

"No Scar, you gave up your whole life to come with me and I'm gonna leave you to fend for yourself," he said sarcastically, "of course you're staying with me. One of my friends will take us in for the time being, until we find our own place. Probably Sam and Emily seeing as they have a spare room." He mused and I suddenly froze; _what if his friends hate me?_

"Tell me about your friends?" my voice wavered slightly even though I didn't want it to.

"Well, for starters they'll all love you, so stop worrying," he squeezed my shoulders and I relaxed slightly, "Sam Uley is like the leader of us all, he's been there for me for years, almost like a father figure." He sounded wistful.

"You know, you've never told me about your family. What are your parents like?" I asked and he stiffened for a second before relaxing against so quickly that I almost missed it.

"I thought you were asking about my friends." He teased but there was an edge to his voice that I didn't like, it was almost nervous. I twisted my fingers through his in the hopes that it would calm him.

"Okay, friends first." I agreed, vowing in my head to come back to the family subject later. When he finally shared, I knew I would too.

"Okay, well Sam is married to Emily and they're the most loved up couple you will ever see. Then there's the rest of the pa- gang. There's Paul; always moody, Leah; even moodier, Jared; too cocky for his own good, Quil; we grew up together, Jake; my other best bud apart from Quil, Colin; really bad joker, Brady; thinks he's the whiz kid and then there's Seth who's Leah's brother and the baby of the group. We're all pretty close but we argue like you wouldn't believe." His voice was animated and I let him ramble on about fights he's had with his friends.

My nerves were finally beginning to calm and I felt at peace; actually, I felt kind of excited to be going to America. It was a whole new chapter of my life and I couldn't wait to start it with Embry, for the first time since I was twelve I actually felt happy.

"Flight 902 is boarding now, flight 902. Thank you." A chipper voice came over the speaker and I instantly tensed again.

_I hate flights. How could I forget that I hate flights?_

**A/n. I've got a little hate from you guys for how I left my last chapter and I SO deserved it so I hope this makes you guys happy! I've got some great ideas from all of you so thank you my lovelies, many cyber hugs! I was wondering if you guys wanted to start a little game I used to play in my old stories. Basically, I write some lyrics of a song that influenced the chapter and you guys have to guess, whoever guesses gets the chapter dedicated to them. Whaddya think? **

**Drop me a review my darlings and I'll always get back to you, it makes me happy to hear from ya! Next chapter shall be filled with drama and will be a long one me thinks so it might take me a while to write but my last exam was today and I just have a French test to get through next Tuesday and then I'm DONE for the year so wish me luck! So I should have more time to write… in theory :P **

**Much love… oh and I'll give all my reviewers a sneak peak of what's to come xx**

**Writer- Of- Randomness**


	7. Chapter 7

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 7

"_Oh the sound is fading in my ears,  
And I can't believe I've lasted all these years.  
But I'll still remember which way to go,  
I'm on the road, the road to home."_

The Road To Home- Amy Macdonald

Flying was really not my idea of travelling. I mean getting into a big metal cylinder and being propelled into the air by engines that could fail at any time and not to mention that something so heavy should not be in the air at all. It's just not natural! I've never liked them and the last time I went on one was when I was seven and my dad had to pick me up and carry me onto the plane while I was screaming and throwing peanuts at the flight attendant… I think it was safe to say that I was quite a rebellious child. But planes are evil. Seriously!

This time, however, I was a little more preoccupied with Embry's warm arm around my shoulders and the feel of being folded into his arms and the lull of his melodic voice as he chatted to me about anything and everything as though he could sense my unease. I settled back in my chair, curled into his chest and tried to ignore the knot in my stomach as I listened to his stories about him and someone called 'Jake' making a mud pie and him getting dared to eat it.

"And he promised me Oreo's if I ate the whole thing, but the dude never delivered. How evil is that?" He exclaimed, his voice light and cheery.

"Of course, the missing Oreo's are the only twisted thing about that story." I joked and he tickled my ribs as I squealed. At least, before the attendant came over and politely told us to shut up with her annoyingly smiley face, checking out my man the whole time. I snuggled deeper into his chest and grinned at her smugly when I felt his arms tighten around me protectively.

The next 8 hours flew by in a flurry of muffled giggles and hilarious stories. But when the voice came over the inter-com telling us to buckle up for landing, Embry suddenly got very quiet and tense and I automatically knew that he was nervous about seeing his friends again.

"It's gonna be okay babe, they love you." I said to him, barely above a whisper but I know he heard because he smiled weakly at me and enveloped me in a hug. The doors opened and we stepped off the plane into the Port Angeles airport.

He took my hand and we walked through the gates together. Even though I'd never met them, I spotted them without any trouble. Stood in a corner were several tanned males and a couple of similarly tanned girls. I looked up at Embry and saw his face was set in an emotionless mask, he obviously didn't leave these guys on good terms.

"Embry!" One of the girls shouted and ran towards us, she practically leapt on him. She only looked to be about seven and he scooped her up with one arm and hugged her to his chest, still grasping my hand with the arm that wasn't holding the small child.

"Hey Claire bear, you gotten so big now." His expression softened for a second as she laughed and put her hands on his cheeks and stared him fully in the face.

"You were gone too long, I missed you THIS much!" She flung her arms out to gesture how much she had missed him and succeeded in almost falling out of his arms but he caught her effortlessly.

"Give him some air Claire." A guy laughed, walking over to us as Embry placed her gently on the ground. The guy was short compared to Embry but still had about half a foot on me with dark hair and chocolate brown eyes.

"Hi Quil."

"We've missed you, man." Quil said softly as he and Embry shared a handshake- hug and clapped each other on the back. After they pulled apart, Quil called over the other bunch of people that were milling around behind him and looking anxious.

"Yo dude!" A loud and seemingly hyper teen bounced over and bumped fists with Embry. "Where the hell have you been? So much has been going on and- whoa! Who's the chick?" he stared at me with a mischievous grin and I smiled back politely whilst trying to inconspicuously press myself into Embry's side a little more.

"Hi." I said shyly and the energetic guy winked at me, I heard a growl deep inside Embry's chest and wondered if it was a guy thing. Mr Hyper took a step back and Embry relaxed into a smile.

"This is Scarlett, my girlfriend." He announced proudly, puffing his chest out a little as we received some shocked looks and even a cat-call from Quil.

"Well at least now we know what you were doing whilst you were away, you animal." A very tall guy said, walking towards Embry with another man of similar height, and the whole group dissolved into fits of incurable laughter.

"Is this a private joke or something?" I piped up and they all straightened up, looking at me as if they didn't notice I was there.

"Something like that, these guys are just Hyena's," he told me and they began sniggering once more, "Scar, this is Claire and Quil, the sugar-rush dude is Seth, the smart ass is Paul and that's Jake with him." I nodded and shook each of their hands in turn, except for Claire who hugged me.

"Don't forget me." Said a deep voice from behind our little crowd. They all parted and a man stepped through, he looked to be the oldest of everyone here and he had the darkest skin.

"I thought I made it clear that I didn't want _him_ anywhere near us." Embry's voice was tight and his jaw was clenched so tight that I could actually see the muscles in his neck and face bulge slightly. The man, however, ignored his remark.

"Hello, I'm Sam Uley." He extended his hand to me but Embry swatted it away and pulled me lightly behind him.

"Don't even touch her." He growled and the pressure of his hand in mine increased to almost painful. I put my other hand on his arm in a comforting gesture and he shot me an apologetic glance and loosened his hold on me.

"Embry-" Sam began but Embry cut him off as soon as he'd started.

"No. Now where's the car?" He addressed one of the boys –maybe Jake- and started to pull me towards the exit. Little Claire ran ahead and led the way to the parking lot. As we walked, I squeezed Embry's hand slightly and smiled up at him reassuringly, he smiled back but it, worryingly, didn't reach his eyes.

We climbed into a car with Paul and Seth and started the very uncomfortable hour-long journey from Port Angeles to their tiny reservation called La Push. Seth, the hyper one, chatted the whole way about his drivers ed classes.

"You shoulda seen me Em, I was driving like sixty miles an hour! It was such a rush but of course not as much as when I'm running in w-" he got cut off by Embry's loud and somewhat pointed coughing. Seth turned round in his front seat to stare at Embry and me in the back and they shared a look before Seth's eyes widened slightly and he looked at me for a second before returning to his former chatter.

"Running in my wicked track uniform, I'm on the running team in school. I'm a senior, you know." He winked at me and I rolled my eyes as Embry punched his arm playfully.

"Yeah, senior in the school of Loser-town." Paul shot towards him and Seth shot him the finger. I smiled as I saw Embry visibly relaxing and began to think that he was gonna be okay. As usual, I thought too soon. Embry's head whipped toward his window and his whole body began to shake slightly.

"Stop the car." He practically whispered and Paul glanced back to give him a questioning glance, slowing the car a little.

"I said stop the car!" he yelled before flinging the door open, Paul braked hard but it didn't matter because Embry was already out and running towards what looked like charred ruins. I hopped out of the car and watched at he stopped in front of a path that let to the obviously burned remains of what once must have been a building. He dropped to his knees with his head in his hands and I broke into a run towards him at the sight of it.

I didn't say a word as I reached him, just placed a hand gently on his shoulder. He lifted his head to look at me and I saw tears pooling in his eyes, he blinked and one escaped, racing down his cheek and leaving a wet streak in its path. I brought my other hand up and brushed the tear away slowly.

"Scarlett." He closed his eyes and whispered, his voice breaking slightly. That was all it took. I dropped to my knees and took him in my arms as he broke down and cried. It was the first time I had ever seen a man this broken, not even my own Father as we buried my Mother.

We stayed there for God only knows how long. I looked over at Paul and Seth after a while and saw they'd gotten back into the car and were waiting, giving us some privacy. I heard a sniffle and drew my attention back to the hurting man in my arms.

"My Mother died here." He informed me in a small voice and I held him tighter, tears welling up in my own eyes as I relived my own pain laced with his.

"What is this place?" I asked him quietly, my curiosity burning but I didn't want to push him. He straightened up and wiped the tears from his eyes, which was useless and more just took their place. He looked over at the charred remains and took my hands.

"This is all I have to offer you Scar. Welcome home."

**A/n. I am so sorry that this took me so long. Things have been so hectic with holidays and family plans and I have a cold. Can you believe it? A cold in the middle of summer. Anyway, I know this chapter was short but I needed it to end here and I know it took forever but I just couldn't find the right words to express what I needed to. Any questions? Comments? I feel kinda depressed that only 2 people reviewed my chapter so in a miniature temper tantrum I will not post again until I get at least 5 reviews. For all you readers without an FF account, you can review anonymously. Until next time (whenever that is), don't hate me for putting Embry in pain and I will reveal both mysterious pasts very soon. Ciao.**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	8. Chapter 8

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 8

"_I only wish you weren't my friend  
Then I could hurt you in the end  
I never claimed to be a saint  
Ooh, my own was banished long ago'_

Snuff- Slipknot

_Previously…_

"_What is this place?" I asked him quietly, my curiosity burning but I didn't want to push him. He straightened up and wiped the tears from his eyes, which was useless and more just took their place. He looked over at the charred remains and took my hands. _

"_This is all I have to offer you Scar. Welcome home."_

I couldn't help but stare at the piece of charcoaled ruin in front of us and my heart twisted painfully. This went so much deeper than I ever could have imagined.

"What happened?" I whispered, my own eyes betraying me as tears pooled in them.

"My Mother- " he choked out before his voice broke. He let out a strangled sob and I wrapped my arms tighter still around him.

"Em come on, you don't need to be here." A deep voice sounded from behind me and I turned my head to see Sam standing there. A deep growl emitted from Embry and he muttered something unintelligible but didn't move.

"Embry, come with us now!" Sam's voice was sharp and commanding. Embry's body tensed as he shook as if fighting some urge. He shook off my arms and rose to his feet, walking over to Sam who had a look of somewhat relief on his face. Embry walked until they were just a few inches apart, noses almost touching.

"No." Embry said quietly but with authority. Sam's face turned from relief to shock faster than a solar flare.

"I'm only trying to help y-" Sam tried to explain but was cut off by a blow to jaw from Embry, who was now visibly shaking. Sam hit the floor and, wisely, stayed there.

"No! If you were trying to help, you would have listened to me! You would have searching for her killer with me. But no! You just order me to stay out of it! It was my Mother you back-stabbing traitor." Embry was seething as he towered over Sam's body who attempted to get up but was pushed back to the ground by my furious boyfriend. I started to run over to him but I was held back by a solemn Paul.

"You don't want to get into this. Embry isn't thinking straight, he might hurt you." Quil explained, standing in front of me and blocking out the two men who were now rolling around on the floor, throwing punches.

"You obviously underestimate him. Let me go." I ordered Paul, trying to make my voice confident. Unsurprisingly, it had absolutely no effect on them and I quickly found that struggling was useless.

"Let. Her. Go." An animalistic growl came from behind Quil and he moved quickly away from me. I saw Embry standing in front of him with a feral look in his eyes. Paul quickly let me go, but pushed me behind him and squared his shoulders.

"Don't do this Embry, you're crazy man." Paul reached a hand out to Embry but pulled it back quickly when Embry snarled. Like an actual animal snarl. _What the hell is going on?_

"She's mine, get it? Mine!" Embry darted around Paul and dragged me over to him, gripping my arm tightly enough to make bruises.

"Embry." I said quietly. He turned his gaze to me, his expression so ferocious that I actually cowered.

"What?" he growled and I suddenly filled with rage. How dare he treat me like a piece of meat, I wasn't an object.

"Let me go, you pig." I looked him square in the eyes and straightened up, much to the shock of all the grown, muscled men around.

"What did you just call me?" Embry's eyes narrowed.

"I called you a pig, now let me go." I raised my voice and his eyes flickered for a second.

"You have no idea what you're dealing with, little girl." He hissed, putting his face really close to mine.

"You think I'm afraid of you? I'm not a piece of meat and I think I deserve some respect. Now let me go and stop being a masochistic idiot!" I finished with a shout and he was so shocked that he actually released me. I stumbled back and succeeded in falling over and landing with a thud on the floor. Embry dropped to the floor beside me and looked at me with sorrow and regret.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, scooting slightly closer to me but only by a few inches. I ignored him and inspected my arm which had red, finger-shaped marks around it.

"Probably going to bruise." I muttered, mostly to myself. I sighed and picked myself up, walking over towards the heap on the floor that was Sam. I kneeled down and touched his shoulder gently, he groaned and rolled over.

"Are you okay?" I asked and he nodded slowly as I helped him to sit up. He pulled off his shirt and held it to his bleeding lip and cheek.

"It's not his fault, I make him angry now. I thought things would be different now- now he has you." He told me, dabbing at his lips.

"What do I have to do with it?" I asked quietly, I was just some girl who fell hard for a guy. It was textbook, right?

"Before he saw me, he was like the old Embry. We haven't seen that in a while. You should forgive him, he didn't mean it." He said, giving my shoulder a little push and I nodded, getting back up to my feet. I walked back over to Embry and all my anger dissolved as I saw him sitting on his own, all the other guys were now sat over by the car, watching Paul help Sam to his feet. I slumped to the floor, hooking an arm around a shocked Embry's shoulder.

"Nice sunset." I observed, looking at the skyline to avoid his stare. Slowly, I felt his hand creep around my waist.

"How's your arm?" he asked after a minute or so of silence. I knew how sorry he was and in that moment, I knew I could never be angry at him for long, whatever he did.

"Oh, it's definitely gonna need an amputation." I joked, poking his rib to try and relieve some of the tension. His other arm came quickly around me and he pulled me onto his lap, hugging me as tight as he dared.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it. I don't know what came over me, I'm sorry." He mumbled into my hair as he stroked my back. I rested my head on his shoulder and traced circles on his arm.

"It's okay, honey. Really, it's okay." I whispered in his ear.

"No it isn't, I hurt you. I could have seriously-" I cut off his ranting with a kiss which he returned. I heard catcalls coming from the guys and pulled away giggling.

"So, are we okay?" Embry asked tentively.

"We're okay," I agreed, "But you owe me a cookie, a big one!" I laughed and he chuckled along with me, nodding his head.

"Oh and one more thing." I said as we got up and he turned to look at me.

"Anything." He promised.

"You have to apologise to Sam." As soon as the words left my mouth, he groaned in frustration.

"Scar, you don't get it."

"So explain." I put my hands on my hips and cocked my head to the side.

"It's a very long and complicated story."

"I've got time. And I'm not asking you to reconcile with him, just apologise for beating the crap out of him. He was just trying to help." I raised my eyebrows, daring him to argue. He sighed deeply and gave me a look that said '_I'm only doing this because I love you_' and took my hand as we walked over to Sam who was sat on the bonnet of the car.

"I'm…" he looked at me and I squeezed his hand to show I was here with him, "I'm sorry for getting angry and hitting you. But to be fair, you star-"

"Embry!" I cut him off; he'd almost ruined a perfectly good apology.

"I apologise too Em, for everything." Sam replied, holding out a hand for him to shake but Embry just stared at it until Sam got uncomfortable enough to pull his hand back.

"I apologised for beating you up, but that doesn't make us friends. And it definitely doesn't make up for what went down between us before. Can we just please go home now?" His face was emotionless but I knew he was hurting, call it an instinct.

"Sure, you guys are staying with me and Kim, we have a spare room. I'm Jared by the way." He looked at me and shook my hand seeing as how I'd not met him at the airport, and began to lead the way to his car.

"I'm sorry, that wasn't exactly what you wanted, was it?" Embry asked me as we slid into the backseat of Jared's car.

"Not exactly, but it's progress. And you can make up for it with the cookie." I said and leaned into his chest as he laughed a little. _Yeah, progress._

**A/n. I got 5 reviews! Yay! Thank you to my lovely anonymous reviewers who made me smile and of course my awesome beta **_Paranormal Romance___**who you can thank for checking this chapter through, please check out her stories, they're awesomeness in a box. So what did you think of crazy Embry? I swear I will reveal all soon but I think we need a happy chapter before, or do we? I think I'll leave it up to you guys. Do you want the truth in the next chapter or would you like a happy chapter first? Please let me know because I seriously need some feedback!much thanks and cyber love…**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	9. Chapter 9

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 9

_Previously…_

"_I'm sorry, that wasn't exactly what you wanted, was it?" Embry asked me as we slid into the backseat of Jared's car._

"_Not exactly, but it's progress. And you can make up for it with the cookie." I said and leaned into his chest as he laughed a little. Yeah, progress._

The drive to Jared's house was fairly peaceful but, if I was being honest, jet lag was catching up with me and I was almost so out of it that a major earthquake couldn't have disturbed me. I was, however, just awake enough to notice two very large black figures dart in front of the car and into the trees as fast as lightening.

"What the hell was that?" I exclaim, bolting upright from my position against Embry's chest. I catch Jared and Embry sharing a slightly worried glance.

"Probably just some coyote's, we get a lot of them around these parts." Jared said quickly as Embry rubbed my back in a soothing gesture. Calming down slightly, I leaned back into my seat; until something occurred to me, that is.

"They were big for coyotes though, they were like mammoths." Jared's grip got a little tighter on his steering wheel and I narrowed my eyes.

"Nah, it was the shadow cast by the headlights that made it look a lot bigger than it actually is. Your eyes are probably playing tricks on you because of the jet lag babe." Embry explained and I frowned slightly, trying to go back in my memory to conclude whether it actually was my imagination.

"I guess." I say, partially convinced but too tired to go into it further. I leaned back against Embry and less that a second later, I was sound asleep. The last thing I remembered before I blacked out completely was the feeling of Embry's arms around me as he carried me from the car to the house.

My eyes fluttered open as I stretched out in the unfamiliar bed. Yawning, I rolled over to reach for Embry but found only cold sheets at my fingertips. I sat upright and ran my fingers through my hair as I looked around: bed, wardrobe, dresser, suitcases… but no Embry.

I shivered as my feet touched the cold, wooden floors as I got out of bed, fishing my dressing gown out of my duffel bag. I padded over to the door and quickly slipped through it into a corridor. I managed to navigate my way to the stairs and decided to call out a hello to see where everybody was. No one answered.

"Weird." I said to myself as I started down the stairs. I would've thought that Embry would have been there next to me when I woke up in this completely new place. Maybe he was catching up with his buds in the living room and didn't hear me.

_Nope, living room contains nothing living._ I got the same result for the Kitchen and Dining room. I was about to give up and go back to bed- because it was probably one of those freaky apocalypse dreams- when I heard voices coming from outside. Angry voices.

I located my pair of fuzzy green frog slippers and strolled outside with no shame- they were awesome slippers! There was a small crowd gathered outside and it looked like two people being restrained in the middle of it.

"Lying, cheating scumbag!" a feminine voice snarled from somewhere in the group of people and as I got closer, I saw Embry with his arms around a very tall girl with brown hair and freckles. Jealousy shot through me like a dagger, was the insulter talking about Embry?

"I told you Sarah, I didn't do anything." Paul growled back to the voice and that's when I realised that Embry wasn't embracing this girl, he was restraining her. _They're still touching though._ It was then obvious that the juvenile insult came from the very same girl as she spoke again.

"Yeah, right. I saw you and _her_ together!" she struggled against Embry and he spoke quietly in her ear. He must have said the wrong thing because at that moment, she turned her head to her arm an started trying to bite his fingers where he held her.

"Whatever, you only saw what you wanted to see! Your delusional, you crazy bitch!" at Paul's words, she raised her head very slowly to stare at him, the look in her eyes made me flinch but Paul gazed back steadily.

"What did you just call me?" she asked, her voice quiet and lethal.

"Crazy. Bitch." He drawled out the words slowly, as if he were talking to a child. Her eyes narrowed and Embry's grip tightened. Then he saw me.

"Scar?" Embry said, distracted for a second by my presence. The girl took the opportunity and leaped out of Embry's grip and a second later, a wolf had tackled Paul to the ground. I blinked slowly, hoping that I was hallucinating but when my eyes opened up, another wolf had replaced Paul and the two wolves were going at it, teeth gnashing and claws out.

"Scarlett, go inside!" Embry commanded me, but I barely registered him. I couldn't pull my gaze away from the fighting wolves. They must have come out of the forest, they can't have just appeared. Can they? I take a few more steps toward the fight, completely entranced. Until one sent the other flying… right toward me.

I heard everyone screaming and I just shut my eyes and waited for the blow. It came. But not in the was I was expecting. My eyes were still shut but I could feel something warm above me, sheltering me. I opened my eyes to see Embry above me, crouched above me protectively. I turned my head and saw the wolf that would have hit me, turn to look at me before pouncing back on the other.

I felt something warm and wet drip onto my arm and stared at the red stuff that was slowly trickling onto the ground and me. It was coming from Embry. I let out a gasp and grabbed Embry's arm, shoving him off me so I could sit up and inspect him. I caught a glimpse of three deep scratch marks before Embry pulled his arm away from me, pulling it behind his back. I yanked it back but there was nothing. No mark. No scratch. No blood. I looked down and there was still blood on my arm; his blood. I gaped up at him in shock but his face was set as he pulled me up and towards the house.

I looked back towards the fight but there were no wolves anymore, just a tightly held Paul and the girl sat on the floor. I planted my feet and tried to stop Embry dragging me. It didn't help much.

"Don't call me crazy again." The girl told Paul before getting up and taking off towards Embry and me, totally naked. "Hey! Wait up!" I pulled against Embry and he stopped for a second, thankfully. I shrugged his hands off me.

"So, I bet that was kinda freaky, right? You'll get used to it, I just wanted to say Welcome to LaPush and I'm sorry about the bad first impression I gave. I'm Sarah." She stuck out a hand for me to shake. That was when the shock wore off and the anger and confusion set in. I didn't take her hand, instead I exploded.

"_Welcome to LaPush_? Seriously? The two of you just-just turned into- hell, I don't even know what happened but that was _not _normal! What kind of government conspiracy shit is this?" I screamed, the girl didn't even look fazed.

"Smart one you've got here, Em." She joked but her just growled in response.

"And you!" I rounded on him, "You knew about this?" he nodded, "Well some warning would have been nice! Three bloody months we've been together and you just decide to bring me here to the land of freaks and not even _tell me anything_!"

"Scarlett, it's not something you can just slip into conversation. Let's go inside. Let me explain." He says in that annoyingly calm voice of his, reaching for me but I jump back.

"Don't touch me!" I scream before turning on my heel and running into the forest. Those aliens or whatever can probably move quickly but none of them follow me for a few seconds so I sprint as fast as my hyper-cool slippers will let me, my dressing gown flapping in the wind behind me. Suddenly, I was yanked backwards by a pair of cold hands.

"Well, here I was, hoping for a snack and looky here; one just flew into my hands. Aren't I lucky?" a sinister voice jeered from behind me as the hands that belonged to it held me tightly enough to make bruises. I sucked in a breath to scream but a hand quickly released my arm and clamped tightly over my mouth.

"Embry!" I screamed, my cries muffled by this giant cold hands as he dragged me further into the forest. _Help me!_

**A/n. I wholly apologise for my tardiness but I do have a good reason, my life has revolved around sickness, school work and baby sitting for the past 2 months so I'm so sorry that I didn't have time to upload. But I promise I'll try to make them more constant. I literally finished this 2 minutes ago so I'm gonna upload now to give it to you guys (hope my beta doesn't mind, love you Laura!) so it won't be proof-read. My inspiration for this was when my cute little toy poodle Bobby trotted by with one of my Mum's froggy slippers and that was when it hit me… no literally, he shook his head and it flew out of his mouth, hitting me in the head. But I finally did write this so thanks Bobby! Leave me a review telling me what I did wrong, what you want next, how much you hate me for leaving you, how much you hate me even more for the cliffy… I'll appreciate anything! Oh, and much love to my wonderful Beta who's penname is Paranormal Romance so please look her up and give her as much support as you do me. And Sarah, yes I finally out you in, yes you did get yelled at, and yes, you really are a crazy bitch but it's part of your charm. **

**Much love and tree hugs!**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	10. Chapter 10

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 10

_Previously…_

"_Embry!" I screamed, my cries muffled by this giant cold hands as he dragged me further into the forest. Help me!_

My kidnapper pulled me through the forest as if I was a pillow, not a human. I struggled against his grasp until my whole body hurt from his tight grip. His maniacal laugh was the only break of silence. We stopped suddenly and he dropped me unceremoniously, I gasped for breath as I landed on my chest and winded myself.

"Master will be pleased, he will be very pleased." The guy said, I took the opportunity to look at him clearly. He had little grey wisps of hair sticking out from his head, giving him the electric shock look. His eyes were a blood red colour and he had the look of a person who'd spent a good portion of his life in some sort of asylum.

"Please, just let me go. Please!" I tried the old begging technique and his look turned strict.

"Now don't give me that, old Myrnin doesn't like begging." He wagged his finger at me, scolding me.

"Myrnin, is that your name?" I asked, trying to sit up.

"Aye, Myrnin was the name given to me." He had a Scottish tint to his accent.

"It's a very nice name." I tried not to stutter, though I feel my heartbeat pounding in my ears. He looked genuinely shocked at first which turned into a cheeky smile as he sat down next to me, obviously not noticing that he'd just kidnapped me.

"No one has ever told Myrnin that before. Myrnin is flattered." He put his hand to his heart and did a little bow whilst sitting down. _Maybe I can befriend him and he'll let me go_.

"You're welcome?" it was more of a question than a statement.

"And your name, pretty girl?" he asked, my eyes widened a little at his compliment. I was just called pretty by my creepy old kidnapper.

"Scarlett." I decided to play it safe and just tell him the truth.

"Ah Scarlett, just like the colour of blood." his eyes became more red and I moved back slightly. Myrnin's eyes grew large and he jumped up and smacked his head on a tree trunk.

"Argh! Myrnin should not have said, master will be angry." He stopped hitting his head and turned around slowly to face me, a smile spreading across his face, "Not if master never finds out that Myrnin said it. Pretty girl must be stopped from telling." He game me a dangerous smile with too much teeth.

"I-I won't tell." I stuttered, my fear getting the better of me. I'd rather be around animal people than this dangerous weirdo any day. _Embry, save me!_

"No, no. Pretty girl will have to become dead pretty girl. Do you know what Myrnin is, _Scarlett_?" He hissed my name and it made me shake in pure terror.

"I don't know." I mumbled, getting ready to run. My plan fell through when he practically flew over to me and crashed me against a tree, pain shot through my head and it whipped back into the hard wood.

"Myrnin is a _vampire _pretty girl, and Myrnin is just going to have to eat you so that you can't tell master." My eyes widened and I managed to let out a bloodcurdling scream before his hand camped over my hand again.

"Stop that! Screaming makes Myrnin mad. It makes so mad that he gets _hungry._" He pulled me head to one side to expose my neck and I felt his teeth graze my throat painfully. I squeezed my eyes tight and waited for the pain. And boy, was there pain!

I felt every agonising second of the experience. His teeth tearing through my skin. The blood being drawn from my body. I screamed against his hand until my throat was sore but the pain wouldn't stop. After what must have only been a few seconds but felt like a lifetime, I felt very light-headed and the scenery around me began to turn and spin.

A howl sounded in the distance and a moment later, my attacker was thrown off me. I yelped quietly as I felt his teeth rip more of my skin as they were yanked away. With nothing holding me up, I slouched to the ground, too weak to even hold my head up. My heart stuttered with happiness as I realised that the wolves that I had ran from had come to save my life and I would be okay. But the realist in me knew that I had lost a lot of blood and that people die everyday.

I heard a series of growls, snarls and the sound of ripping and tearing. The seconds passed like days and even breathing began to hurt. My eyes shut and refused to open and I knew I would be unconscious within seconds. I breathed out a small sigh and a last word before blacking out completely.

"Embry."

**A/n. I just wanna thank you guys so much for your reviews and support! I love you all so much and even though authors do this at the end of the story, I wanted to say this now too. I looked on my story traffic the other day and I was amazed with how many people were reading this story, it's just so amazing! I would enjoy a few more reviews but even so, I can't believe that so many of you have this story on alert/favourite. To show my appreciation, I am going to be writing another chapter tonight (a longer one!) and with permission from my awesome beta Paranormal Romance, am going to be posting it straight away! **

**I also promise that after this next chapter, I will do some very happy and humorous chapters to even it out a bit. I don't know if you've noticed my change in style of writing but I wanted to see if you liked this style better. And if you haven't noticed, I don't mind that either. Anyone who reviews (even just a smiley face) will get a teaser from the next chapter and anonymous reviewers are so welcome!**

**If there's anything you want to see in the next chapters or would like to be included as a character, drop me a line and I will do my absolute best to put you in there. I might also start doing a 'Fanfiction of the upload' in case you guys are interested, let me know.**

**I'll be off now. Peace out and much love**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	11. Chapter 11

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 11

_Previously…_

_I breathed out a small sigh and a last word before blacking out completely._

"_Embry."_

They say that when you're about to die, your life flashes before your eyes. I don't know whether that was actually happening or if I was just reliving some memories but images from my childhood popped into my head. Some good…

_*Flashback*_

"_Mummy wook!" I ran into the little bakery that my parents owned, carrying a huge white cat in my little arms, trying not to trip over his long, fluffy tail._

"_What is it honey?" my mother asked, walking around to the counter from the kitchens. She always had a soothing tone and she was the prettiest woman in the world, in my opinion anyway. _

"_Wook what I found! It's a fwuffy kitty!" being only five or so at the time, my teeth were beginning to fall out and I found it impossible to pronounce my 'l's at all, grown-ups for some reason found this adorable. I didn't see it._

"_Oh wow, where did you find it?" she asked, coming over to scratch his head as I flopped down on the floor with the cat in my arms and began petting it lovingly._

"_In the garden, can we keep her mummy?" I asked, looking up at her. She smiled and felt around its neck for a collar but came up short._

"_We have to check in case she belongs to someone sweetie, she might be lost. But I think she needs someone to take care of her until we find her owner." She explained and I grinned a toothless grin, jumping up and grabbing the kitty in my arms. I was the right girl for the job._

_*End Flashback*_

It turned out that the cat was a stray and we got to keep her. I named her 'Princess Fluffy of Fluffington', a ridiculous name for a cat, especially since we found out a few weeks later that 'she' was a 'he' but I was five and the name stuck.

Sometimes, however, we remember the bad things about our childhood, the things we want to forget…

_*Flashback*_

"_You have to stop doing this Ellen, we're going under!" I heard my dad shout as I cowered in my bed. I hated it when my parents fought like this. I was seven and they thought I was tucked up in bed, sleeping like a baby. _

"_They're family Frank, they've been good to us! They're Scarlett's godparents for heaven's sake!" my mother screamed back._

"_We're not making enough to keep employing them!"_

"_Well maybe we would if you'd stop spending our savings on that little floozy you've been seeing behind my back!" I could hear the tears in my mum's voice. Something crashed in their room and at that point, I pulled my pillow over my head and sang nursery rhymes until I fell asleep._

_*End Flashback*_

And then there's the memories we will never forget, the ones that haunt us…

_*Flashback*_

"_How's your foot baby?" My mum asked as we drove back from the hospital. I rubbed my ankle tenderly and winced. I'd recently taken up ice skating and had tripped at practise, spraining my ankle badly._

"_S'ok I guess." I was quite lucky to be honest, I was 10 and this was my first real hospital trip, other than my birth of course and that time I fell down the stairs as a toddler._

"_How about we stop for take-out? Chinese, your favourite?" she asked and I smiled, nodding and immediately feeling a little better. Until…_

"_Mum! Look out!" I screamed as I noticed a truck swerving on to our side of the road, driving much faster than he should have. She turned the steering wheel fast, but not fast enough. The truck hit us and our little car rolled over again and again, right into a ditch, I felt arms around me for some of it, shielding me, but after the second roll, the arms were ripped away. _

"_Ow." I muttered, everything hurt and my eyes filled up with tears. I looked over to my mum to see if she was okay. Her eyes were closed._

"_Mum?"_

_*End Flashback*_

No! I won't remember anymore. Not now, if I'm gonna die, these won't be my last thoughts. I struggle to open my eyes but it's like they're clamped shut. Voices fill my head though, and not the crazy kind, real voices.

"Why are we _here_ Jake. She should be at a hospital." I heard a familiar growl. _Embry!_ I heard the beep of a heart monitor speed up and realised that it was mine.

"Carlisle can help, Em. He's an expert in all things like this." Jake replied, I felt cold hands touch my head and I internally winced at the pain.

"Then tell me, _doctor_, will she be okay?" Embry asked, obviously still tense. It was then that the feeling in my arms came back and a felt his warm hand holding mine.

"Yes, I think so. She lost a lot of blood but the transfusions saved her. However…" a silky voice trailed off, I guessed it belonged to this doctor.

"However? What do you mean, however? Wait, she's not going to become a-"

"No Embry, she's still a human. He drank deeply enough that all the venom will have been removed. My only concern lies with her head trauma, we don't know if she'll wake up. She's in safe hands here though, know that." He was a very kind doctor and he treated me with care as he wrapped a bandage around my neck.

"She has to wake up." I heard the tears in Embry's voice and I wanted nothing more than to wrap my arms around him, I tried to move. I heard a gasp.

"She just squeezed my hand!" Embry's voice was shocked as he grasped my small hand in both of his.

"Talk to her, she may be responding to the sound of your voice." The doctor encouraged.

"Baby? Scar it's me, I'm so sorry babe. I'm sorry, please, just squeeze my hand again. Can you do that? Squeeze my hand." His voice was thick with unshed tears as he kissed my fingertips. I pulled all my strength together and tried to do it again. Obviously I succeeded as a round of gleeful gasps filled the room.

"Keep going, Embry." The doctor said again and he lifted one of my eyelids and shone a torch into it. "She's responsive, she might wake up." He sounded very hopeful.

"Scarlett please wake up, I have so much to tell you, to share with you. I promise you, I'll never lie to you again, I'll tell you every last little secret just please, wake up. I love you Scarlett, you're my everything, I found myself the day I met you, and you can't leave be because I would be nothing. Scar, baby just wake up and I'll prove myself to you, I'll do anything." A tear slipped from my closed eye as he made his speech, I felt my strength coming back to me in a bucket-load and I gripped his hand and my eyelids twitched.

"Embry?" my throat hurt and my voice was hoarse but it was enough to grant me a flurry of kisses to the hand he was holding.

"Yeah baby, I'm here." He whispered. Suddenly, the memory of the attack came flooding back to me and I gasped, my eyes flying open as I grabbed at Embry, tears running down my face. It was as if my body had blanked that part out until now and all the feelings just flashed back.

"I-I and h-he, Em-m…" I gasped and he pulled me to him, ignoring the Doctor's protests as he cradled me in his arms, soothing me with sweet nothings, kissing my head and stroking my back as I bawled my eyes out on his shoulder. I could tell he felt my pain.

"I'm here, I'm here and I won't let anything hurt you, not ever again. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." He repeated in my ear as I clung to him with all my might, wanting desperately to feel same. I finally quieted enough to speak.

"Embry," I whispered, just loud enough for him to hear, "I don't care what you are, just don't ever let me go." I felt his arms tighten around me and I fell back into unconsciousness, only this time, it wasn't so bad.

*&%$£$%&*

"Do you think she's dead?" I heard Seth ask loudly, waking me from my Embry-filled dreaming. The question was quickly followed by a sharp smack and a sound of protest. My eyes fluttered open.

"Great job, dumbass, you woke her up." Jake rolled his eyes, swiping at Seth again, which he artfully ducked. I smiled a little at their antics but my eyes searched the room until they met with those of my soul mate, sat on a chair by my bed. He took my hand and kissed it.

"Hey there beautiful." He murmured and then it was my turn to roll my eyes.

"Liar, I bet I look like crap." _And sound like it_. As if reading my thoughts, he held a glass of water to my lips and I drank slowly, water had never tasted better. While I was drinking, I gave him my bed we-should-talk look and he seemed to get the point.

"All right you guys, you've seen she's alive , now get out. Go patrol." He ordered and, surprisingly, they listened and filed out quietly. I stopped drinking and he put the glass back on the bedside table and then helped me to lift myself up into a sitting position. I finally took in my whole surroundings and noticed that this wasn't the room I was in when I woke up the first time.

"Did you move me?" I asked, drawing my gaze back to him.

"Yeah, I thought you'd be more comfy here with us." He answered quietly, not wanting to meet my gaze. I grabbed his hand with one of my own and used the other to grab his chin to force him to look at me.

"I think we need to talk." I told him, not breaking eye contact. He nodded.

"Where do you want to start?" he asked, his voice hoarse as if he'd been crying all night.

"What exactly are you?" I winced as the question came out harsher than expected but he just squeezed my hand and sighed before answering.

"I suppose the most common term is werewolf, but we don't need a full moon to change like they do in the legends. Are you scared?" he asked tentatively, as if he was afraid of my response.

"No, you're obviously not the scariest thing out there," I touched my neck tenderly, "I know that from experience." He winced and pulled my hand away from my neck, I took the opportunity and pulled him onto the bed with me, he put his arms around me and cradled me against his chest, careful of my injuries.

"That _thing_ that attacked you was a-"

"A vampire, I know. He told me." I stated and felt Embry's chest rumble as he growled.

"That's what we're made for, to kill the leeches." He snarled the words and I put a hand to his chest as a comforting gesture.

"You saved me."

"Yes," he kissed the top of my head, "I'm sorry I couldn't find you in time." I sat up to look at him.

"Didn't find me in time? I'm alive, aren't I?" He pulled me gently back down and stroked my hair.

"I know but if I'd have found you sooner, you wouldn't be… like this." My eyes widened and I shot upright, ignoring the dizziness I felt.

"I'm not a- a _vampire_, am I?" I whispered the 'vampire' part and put my hands to my neck, gasping in horror. He pulled my hands away gently and looked me in the eyes.

"No, you're human. I would_ never_ let that happen to you." I hugged him tight and he pulled me into his lap.

"So what did you mean, am I broken now or something?" I asked, gripping his shirt in my hands.

"No. No! I just meant that you wouldn't be hurt if I wasn't so slow. I'm sorry." He hugged me back just as tight.

"Don't be sorry, you saved me and that's all that counts." I whispered and laid back down, tugging him with me.

"What else do you want to know?" he asked once we were all snuggled up together under the covers.

"Everything." I replied simply and he complied. He spent the next hour or so explaining everything about what he was. I learnt that he protects his reservation from vampires except for the one's who lived a few miles away and about Jake's girlfriend.

"Woah, wait. I'm confused." I said, stopping him.

"The vampire that you encountered was evil but the Cullen's, they're tolerable I suppose. But one of them married a human and they had a baby together before she changed into one of them. Jake is in love with their child, Renesmee." He explained, and I smiled at his patience.

"Is that even possible." I asked, a vampire and a human? I just couldn't see it. He chuckled and kissed my forehead, a new habit of his.

"None of us thought so, but I guess we were all shocked."

"And Jake loves her? But I thought that you guys hated all vampires, even the tolerable ones." I laughed and poked his chest. He shuffled slightly.

"Well, _we _do. But Jake is different, and Ness isn't a whole vampire, she's cool." Is it insane that a spark of jealousy shot through me? I ignored it anyway,

"Jake is different?"

"He used to be, to me at least. I guess now we're kinda the same." He pondered, I just shot him my 'this is way to complicated for my tiny head' look.

"You're not making sense."

"Sorry. Well you know how wolves mate for life," I nodded, "so do we. It's called imprinting and it's like love at first sight but so much more. They're our everything, and when we find them, we never let go." He explained, then it dawned on me.

"Embry, be honest with me, am I your imprint or just something to keep you occupied?" I gave him a serious look and he responded by roaring out with ear-splitting, belly aching laughter. I frowned and poked his chest, "This isn't funny!" I protested but he just flipped me over and rested our foreheads together.

"I think it's funny. If you weren't my imprint, do you really think that I would lead you on like that?" he looked directly into my eyes and I knew, "You're my imprint Scarlett, my only." He captured my lips in a perfect kiss and life was good. Eventually, he pulled away and we settled back into the bed.

"Embry? Can I ask you something?"

"Anything, love." He nuzzled my hair. I took a deep breath and prepared myself.

"Why do you hate Sam so much?" I asked and I heard his sharp intake of breath as he tensed.

"Of all the things, why did you have to ask that?" he groaned.

"Because you said no secrets when I was waking up. It's part of you Embry, and I want to know everything about you." I rubbed his arm soothingly.

"Scar, I'm willing to bet that you have secrets too. Secrets that you don't want to share." I knew he was right, but I also knew that if we were going to make this work, we were gonna have to be honest about ourselves, and that included our pasts.

"I know, but we can't build this relationship on secrets. What about if I tell you my past and then you can share if you want to." I knew I was taking a gamble, but I wanted to share everything about me with him, the good and bad.

"I-I guess, if you want to." He mumbled and I took another deep breath, resting my head on his chest.

"I do. Okay, where to start?"

"Well I know you grew up in Yorkshire, start there." He prompted me.

"Okay, my parents owned this cute little bakery and coffee shop, my mum actually inherited it from her Mother, who I'm named after, it was called 'Scarlett's Place'. My mum was an amazing woman, she was so kind and just- the best mother I could ask for," a tear escaped down my cheek as I talked about it, "She used to bake cakes with me every Saturday and she sang lullaby's to me every night before I went to sleep. Her name was Ellen" I closed my eyes, remembering her voice.

"And your dad?" Embry asked softly.

"_His_ name was Frank," I spat out, "and it was common knowledge in our little town that he'd spend a night with anything with a pulse and boobs. Having a kid wasn't on his to-do list for life, that's for sure." I laughed bitterly. Embry kissed my shoulder comfortingly. I carried on,

"When I was eleven, my mum and I were in a car accident. A drunk driver hit us and-" tears began streaming down my face and I stopped talking. Embry made soothing shushing noises and held me tight.

"God it was a-awful Embry, t-there was s-so much blood. S-she died and I was in t-the car, the wreckage w-was so bad that th-they couldn't get m-me out for an hour. I was s-screaming for a whole hour." He shushed me after that and wouldn't let me speak until I had calmed down.

"You're okay babe, you're okay." He murmured as he kissed my hair. I composed myself enough not to stutter when I spoke.

"That's the thing, I should be dead-" he cut me off.

"No! You should and you are alive right now and that's all that matters." I sighed and carried on.

"You don't understand Embry. That truck, it hit _my_ side of the car. _I _should have died, the doctors said that I would have if it weren't for her throwing her body over me. She gave her life for me." He kissed my cheek.

"Well then I have so much respect for her, she saved an amazing woman." He said simply and it made me smile. Then I remembered the next part to my story and I frowned.

"My dad didn't think so. In fact, as soon as I got out of hospital, he sent me away to boarding school because he couldn't be around me. I didn't even get to go to her funeral, I don't even know where she's buried." I heard Embry growl into my hair.

"It's_ not_ your fault, you know that, right? It's not!" He practically snarled and I gave a small nod which seemed to satisfy him.

"When I came home for the holidays, he'd sold the bakery. That place meant the world to my Mother, and he just got rid of it like it was nothing. He'd also found himself a cheap slut half his age. She's now my stepmother." I tried to keep the disgust out of my voice but it just leaked through.

"I guess you weren't very happy."

"Ha! Understatement of the century. I went completely nuts and went to stay with my Aunt Lisa. I spent every holiday with her after that and barely even spoke to my Father until I was eighteen and about to go to university. I decided to try and patch things up before I fully became an adult. When I told him I was going to study Culinary Arts in London, he told me that if I dared, I shouldn't bother coming home ever again. He said I would wind up just like him and my Mother, broke and in debt."

"But you went anyway."

"Damn straight! I haven't seen him since, and that was almost three years ago. The only member of my family that I ever speak to is my Aunt Lisa. I stopped trusting people because if I can't trust my own Father, who could I trust? So that's my story, I'm a disowned nobody who doesn't belong anywhere." I finished and Embry turned me to face him, he looked angry.

"You are not a nobody, you're a somebody. You're my somebody and you belong with me. Always." He kissed me firmly and I smiled, warming to the embrace. I pulled away after a minute or so and looked at him.

"You don't have to tell me about Sam if you don't want." I told him but he shook his head, drawing me back into his arms.

"I want to, you shared so much with me. It's all a little complicated though so I'll start from the beginning. I never knew my dad, my mom would never tell me who he was but I know he had to have been a descendant from this reservation and my bets are on either Sam's, Quil's or Jake's dads. My mom was fierce and worked hard for us, I slouched off most of the time. I wasn't always a wolf and when I was going through the change, I got very defensive and picked fights with her a lot, I made her cry, I was stupid." He sounded so guilty that I knew he regretted it, I didn't say anything so he went on.

"About six months ago, I was on patrol, we were chasing a vampire. I was downwind and not far from my house when I caught the smell of burning. And then I heard the screams. By the time I got there- it was too late." It was my turn to comfort him now. It was then that I remembered my first night here and what had happened. Embry began talking again before I could say anything.

"I tried to get her out but it was so hot and I couldn't take the smoke, the pack dragged me out before I got killed too. By the time the fire department got here, it was too late. I caught the faintest scent of vampire and strange werewolf around the ruins and I was desperate to go after them, to get answers. But Sam was convinced it was an accident and forbade me from tracking the scents. He's the alpha so we have to obey him, we have no choice. I was so angry that I left that night for England and didn't come back until now. The other night was the first time I'd ever seen the ruins in the light of day." I hugged him tight and quietly asked the question I've been wanting to know for a while now.

"Why did you come back, Embry?"

"That's simple, because Sam ordered it. He said that there were new wolves about to change and I needed to return to my duties. I guess he thought we'd be okay. He knows something Scar, he knows something about her death and I'm going to find out what." He started shaking with anger and I kissed his cheek, trying to calm him down.

"Hey, don't think about that now. I'm sorry about your mum." I whispered.

"I'm sorry about yours too. And about your dad, he doesn't see how amazing you are." He kissed my forehead again and I managed to smile, a miracle considering what we had just talked about.

"So that's it, no more secrets." I said, he knew everything now.

"No more secrets," he agreed, "There is just one thing though. You don't have to answer but… your attack," I tensed, "is there anything else I should know? I just want to make sure there's no more of them that can hurt you." He rubbed my back as he spoke.

"Well, he did keep talking about someone, calling him 'Master', but then again he was talking in third person about himself so he could have been crazy." I said.

"Even so, I'm going to check it out." He said, mostly to himself.

"Be careful." I told him and he kissed the tip of my nose.

"Always." He promised and we sat in comfortable silence. As crazy as it sounds, I don't mind the fact that he's a werewolf, I trust him with my life and nothing could break this trust, this_ imprint_.

"I have a question for you now." Embry said finally. I raised my eyebrows in a 'go-ahead' gesture at him. "Go on a date with me?" He grinned.

**A/n. Well that was a chapter and a half! So the truth comes out! What do you guys think? And remember, I've worked very hard on this and neglected quite an important essay for this (not that I'm complaining for the distraction) so please drop me a line and review.**

**Fanfiction of the update: Hidden Symbols by cyberpen – a Paul x OC story  
Song of the update: Need You Now by Lady Antebellum**

**Remember, I'll put all your ideas or any characters you want in the story, I love reviews and I adore your ideas. If I get over 5 reviews for this chapter, I will post an Outtake or a normal chapter in Embry's POV, which I don't normally do. **

**Peace out guys**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	12. Chapter 12

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 12

**A/n. Alright, I know I've been MIA for a while, a really long while actually but I have a good excuse. Well, actually I don't other than I just kept forgetting to write this and then whenever I got around to it, I had absolutely no ideas and so I didn't want to write a load of utter crap. **

**I'm really sorry and I'll try to keep updates a little more regular, but keep in mind that it's exam time for us Brits soon and we all know what that means, *imitates voice of very annoying form tutor* "It's time to prioritise your time and stop messing around, the key is to revise. And when I say 'revise', I obviously mean be bored to death while I keep telling you to study your arses off because that makes me look good."**

**Anywho… on with the story! **

_Previously…_

"_Be careful." I told him and he kissed the tip of my nose._

"_Always." He promised and we sat in comfortable silence. As crazy as it sounds, I don't mind the fact that he's a werewolf, I trust him with my life and nothing could break this trust, this imprint._

"_I have a question for you now." Embry said finally. I raised my eyebrows in a 'go-ahead' gesture at him. "Go on a date with me?" He grinned…_

"Scar, what the hell are you doing?" I heard Embry's voice, heavy with sleep as I rolled over for the millionth time that night. His breath tickled the back of my neck as his arms tightened around me.

"Getting comfy, what does it look like?" I sighed back, exasperated.

"It doesn't look like anything, my eyes are shut and it's dark."

"Smart arse."

"You know it, now let me sleep or you'll have one very grouchy wolf on your hands." I felt his grin against my skin as he kissed me shoulder and his hands tickled my ribs lightly. I kicked him in the shin with the heel of my foot which only served to make me curse with the pain of hitting his muscled leg and him to begin howling with laughter.

I rolled over and began trying to smack his face and chest for laughing at me, but he held my hands away from him easily and flipped me over, wrestling playfully with me. I laughed loudly as he knocked the lamp shade over with his foot and swore under his breath. Someone banged on the wall.

"I don't know what kinky shit you guys are getting up to and believe me when I say I will never want to find out, but some of us are trying to sleep over here so pipe down or go have sex at Quil's house!" Jared's muffled voice shouted from his bedroom.

Embry cocked an eyebrow at me before replying, "You're just pissed because Kim went to her Mother's house and now we're having more fun than you."

"And how the hell do you know what kind of fun we get up to?" Jared demanded. Embry put a hand over my mouth to keep me from laughing as he pulled funny faces at me, imitating Jared speaking.

"I patrol with you, man. I've seen the horrifying images." Embry yelled back and I heard a growl coming from the other room.

"Watch your mouth, boy. I can still beat your ass if I want to. Go to sleep!" He half growled, half screamed. Embry and I shared a look before he pressed his face into the good side of my neck to muffle his laughter.

"You're an evil wolf." I whispered in his ear. He chuckled darkly before shooting me a mischievous grin.

"Oh, that wasn't evil, _this_ is evil." He hopped out of bed, threw my over his shoulder and jumped out of the window without even blinking. I screamed as we dropped to the floor and hit him on the back as he started running with me.

"What are you doing Embry, this is NOT funny!" I screamed but he just laughed and picked up the pace, not even breaking a sweat. Eventually we stopped and he put me down, I turned around to tell him off but stopped dead as I saw what we were standing on.

"Why are we on a cliff?" I asked, feeling slightly nervous now.

"I'm going to show you my favourite past time, cliff-diving." He smiled, reaching out to me with his arms. I jumped away before he could grab me.

"Embry Call, there is absolutely no way you are getting me to willingly jump off a cliff into nothing." I backed up slowly as he advanced towards me.

"It's into water babe." He explained, still reaching out to me. I managed to jump away again as he lunged playfully for me.

"Oh yeah, because that makes it _so_ much safer. I think it's better I do my favourite past time instead." I said, still backing away from him.

"And that would be?" He asked, stopping and folding his arms over his chest, raising an eyebrow sarcastically.

"Running away from crazy people who want to push me off cliffs." I yelled, turning and running away into the forest. I heard his footsteps behind me but I knew he was practically walking because, if he'd wanted to catch me right away, he'd have no problem at all.

I sprinted as fast as I could through the tree's, my feet getting wet from the damp of the leafy mush on the floor seeping through my socks. I prayed I didn't stamp on a sharp stick or something and impale my foot on it.

I came across 2 boulders that were sat quite close together and skidded to a stop to inspect them. They were close enough that I could easily fit in with a little wiggling on my part, but not big enough that Embry could fit through without some difficulty.

"Perfect." I whispered to myself, climbing through the gap and wiggling into the middle. I heard Embry's footsteps a ways to the left of me and smiled. I knew he could be soundless if he wanted to, but he was deliberately making his footsteps heavy so I wouldn't be afraid. The thought warmed me.

"Marco." His teasing voice called out. I sniggered to myself and braced a hand against the stone, ready to jump out.

"Polo." I yelled back and I heard his footsteps coming closer.

"Marco." He called again, his voice was louder this time and I could tell he wasn't far away. I opened my mouth to answer again, this was pointless really, he could sniff me out if he wanted to and I knew he knew exactly where I was.

"Polo." The voice that yelled back wasn't mine, I looked up to see a huge man perched on top of one of the boulders, peering down at me with fluorescent eyes. I screamed. Loudly.

"Scarlett?" Embry yelled, panicked. I heard his footsteps as he ran towards me. The man's face turned to one of shock as he tried to reach a hand down towards me. I crouched down as low as I could get inside the two boulders. I knew the huge guy would never make it through and so I was safe, at least temporarily.

"Hey, wait a-" the man started but didn't finish as a wolf leaped over the boulders and tackled him to the ground. I heard growling and snarling before silence. Dead silence.

"Oh no." I whispered to myself, peeking around the edge of the boulder, keeping a hand braced to pull myself back inside as a seconds notice.

"What the hell, Emmett?" Embry growled, back in human form and very naked. Both men were sat on the floor about 10 feet apart.

"What the hell, yourself. I was dropping Ness off at Jake's for the evening, Alice and I snuck her out while Bella was distracting Edward, he's so damn uptight. I heard a human and thought I'd investigate." Emmett replied, picking himself up off the floor and dusting off his jeans.

"Investigate by scaring the hell out of me?" I asked sarcastically and quickly ducked back inside as the giant man looked over at me, half amused, half pissed off.

"It's okay Scar, Emmett's a good guy… I suppose." Embry growled under his breath as he walked a little way back into the woods and fished a partly torn pair of boxers from the floor, shoving them on quickly.

"Yeah well, I think the terrified human will be the judge of that." I said, finally coming out of my hidey hole and narrowing my eyes at Emmett.

"Sorry." He shrugged, that was the worst apology ever. Embry walked back over to me and slung an arm around my shoulders, subtly pulling him slightly behind him in a protective pose.

"Go home Emmett, and get off Quileute land. Paul's on patrol tonight and he's in a really bad mood, Sarah told him to take a hike." Embry told him, his tone was friendly but even I noticed the underlying warning. Emmett, apparently either didn't notice or simply didn't care.

"Again? Knowing those two, they'll be at it like rabbits before the night's over, like always." Emmett said with an amused look on his face.

"No doubt, good night Emmett." Embry turned on his heel and walked us in the opposite direction. I heard Emmett's goodnight from behind us. I laced my fingers with Embry's leaning against his side slightly as we walked.

"Why do Sarah and Paul always fight?" I asked him, stifling a yawn. Without missing a beat, Embry scooped me up into his arms and cradled me against his chest as he walked.

"Well, it's just the way they are. Their personalities clash terribly, they're both stubborn and never back down from a fight, so they vent their frustrations in a more… explosive way. Sarah moved to our pack when she mated with Paul, and he's never met someone that's exactly like him before, and neither has she. Unfortunately, this means that neither of them will admit that the other is wrong, ever."

"But they're in love?" I asked.

"Yes, very much so. The fact of the matter is, they can insult and fight each other until the day they die, but if anyone else even makes a joke at her or his expense, it's Armageddon. I'd never seen a couple more passionate about one another, until I met you, of course." He grinned and kissed my cheek.

We arrived back at the house just as the sun was rising. I twisted out of his arms and the dragged him around to the back of the house, where we could see the sunrise over the treetops and we sat down on the grass, cuddled up to each other as we watched daylight arrive.

"So," I finally said after we'd sat in silence for a while, "was that an Embry Call date?"

"Mm-hmm; cliffs, darkness, hide and seek, vampires… what more could you ask for?" He teased as he pulled me closer to him, burying his face in my hair. As if on cue, my stomach rumbled.

"Breakfast?"

**A/n. Okay, I know it's just a filler chapter but I promise I'll put some real plot into the next one. We learnt a little more about Paul and his gal, that was fun, right? Love you guys and thanks for your patience. ~Writer-Of-Randomness~**


	13. Chapter 13

**Mr Pretzel **

Chapter 13

_Previously…_

"_So," I finally said after we'd sat in silence for a while, "was that an Embry Call date?" _

"_Mm-hmm; cliffs, darkness, hide and seek, vampires… what more could you ask for?" He teased as he pulled me closer to him, burying his face in my hair. As if on cue, my stomach rumbled._

"_Breakfast?"_

"Did you just say breakfast?" A voice came from behind us and I jumped in Embry's arms. Sarah walked out from the back of the house and plopped herself down next to me.

"Yeah, for _us_. You can make yours yourself." Embry retorted, climbing to his feet and holding a hand out to pull me up. Sarah snorted, laying back on the grass.

"Like I'd ever need to make my own breakfast, I have Emily for that. Has she met Emily yet?" She pointed lazily towards me and Embry rolled his eyes.

"She has a name, and no. Who's Emily?" I answered- asked. Sarah closed her eyes and stretched out fully, I noticed she was wearing clothes this time.

"The boss-man's wife. Sam's better half, and she's dying to meet you. You guys need to come over this morning, she makes the most amazing muffins." Sarah's stomach rumbled loudly at the thought. Embry tensed.

"That's not such a good idea Sarah." He said through gritted teeth. She opened an eye to stare at him, before rolling it and shutting it again.

"He's not there, dumbass. He's gone to talk to some elders in a Res a couple of towns over. You really think I'd risk you two ripping each other apart, although it would be amusing." He growled at her flippant words.

"I still don't think it's a good idea, tell Emily she can come here later if she wants." Embry replied shortly before stalking off across the lawn towards the door. I ran after him and grabbed his hand, shooting him a dark look.

"Why are you being so rude? I'm sure this Emily person never did anything to you." I said and he gave me a pained look.

"But she's his wife, in his house."

"So what? You hate her because she's married to him. That's so biased." I put my hands on my hips.

"You don't get it Scar, I don't hate her, but I don't want to be near him." He tried to walk into the house again but I grabbed his shoulder.

"He's a few towns away, Embry. But fine, if you don't wanna go then you can stay and sulk here, but I'm going to meet the rest of the pack." And with that I strolled past him into the house, I heard Sarah's laughter behind me.

"She's feisty Em, I like her." She laughed, ignoring his growls. I walked upstairs and began to pick out some clothes to wear. I felt Embry's presence in the doorway.

"You're not going." He said quite simply, so I ignored him. I ran a brush through my hair and walked into the bathroom to brush my teeth. He followed me like a petulant child trying to get my attention.

"Did you hear me Scarlett, I said you're not going there." I laughed internally at his tone and squeezed the toothpaste onto my toothbrush.

"Yeah, uh-huh." I began brushing my teeth as he watched me, I could see him trying to calm himself before he snapped at me.

"You just- you don't get how much I hate him." He rand a hand through his hair and tugged on it.

"Yeah, well I hate Justin Bieber but there's still a million screaming teenagers that adore him. Different people form different opinions." I gargled, spat, then left the bathroom to hunt down my yellow socks out of my bag.

"Would you stop with the sarcasm?"

"Would you stop with the childishness?"

"So you're taking his side?" Embry crossed his arms over his chest and walked over to the window, refusing to look at me.

"I'm not taking anyone's side, I just want to meet Emily. I want to see all the parts of your life and I can't do that if you keep me hidden here. I'm pretty sure none of your friends are going to bite me in the neck." He visibly stiffened at my words and whirled around to shoot me a look so furious that I actually took a step back.

"Is it so bad that I want to protect you?" He practically shouted, shaking now.

"No Embry, but there's a fine line between protecting and smothering. I'm trying to be open-minded about your life but I can't do that if I can't talk to people who've been through it too. I'm assuming Emily is human?" he nodded, "well then she's probably gone through what I'm going through."

"Can't you just talk to Kim about it?" He asked, realising he was fighting a lost battle.

"Yeah, and Kim told me all human mates talk and share experiences and stuff, am I not allowed to be a part of that because you're so afraid I might fall over or get myself kidnapped again?" I said and when he sighed, I knew I'd won.

"I'm sorry." His words were barely audible but I heard him. I walked over to him and pulled him into my arms.

"I know, I love you for wanting to protect me." I whispered in his ear and he wrapped his arms tight around me.

"Are you sure you want to meet all the pack?" He pulled back slightly to look into my eyes.

"Absolutely."

"Alright, personally I think you're crazy, but alright." He kissed the tip of my nose, then my lips lightly before he pulled away to get dressed. We walked downstairs hand in hand.

"Does this mean I get a ride?" Sarah asked expectantly and Embry tried to punch her in the arm which she artfully dodged.

"Yeah sprog, you get a ride." He answered and she smacked him quickly upside the head.

"I am _not_ a sprog, I believe you are referring to either yourself or Paul." She said before strolling out to the car.

"Why don't you just run?" Embry asked as he and I walked out after him. He opened the door for me like a gentleman and I gave him a sarcastic pat on the head before climbing in. Sarah jumped in the back and poked her head between the two front seats.

"Because the asshole is still on patrol for another 10 minutes and I ran out of insults last night, I need to recharge."

"What were you and Paul fighting about, anyway?" I asked and she thought for a minute before shrugging.

"Hell if I know." She flopped back into the seat as I laughed. It only took a few minutes to get to Emily's house and I marvelled at how well Embry remembered the roads of LaPush, it was like he'd never left.

Sarah had opened her door and was half way to the house before we'd even pulled to a stop, Embry and I looked at each other and laughed before he turned the ignition off and we got out ourselves. He draped a casual arm across my shoulders as we walked towards the house but I knew that it was a protective stance. I leaned into his side and wrapped an arm around his waist comfortingly.

"Not yet, you know the rules!" A female voice came from inside the house, followed by a sharp smack and a deep voice shouting in protest. I shot a worried look at Embry and he smiled gently, leaning down to whisper in my ear.

"Just remember, this was your idea." His breath tickled my ear and I giggled as the voices form inside continued.

"But Sarah's here, that's everybody except Paul, but he's always late and we never wait for him. Everyone's here Emily!" The deep voice whined and laughter ensued.

"Oh yeah? Look outside, idiot." Sarah's voice sounded out and five faces appeared in the window; Quil, Seth, a female and two males I didn't know.

"Embry!" The two guys I didn't know shouted and bolted out the door, straight towards us. Embry smiled slightly and pushed me gently away from him before the two teenagers tackled him to the ground, laughing.

"They're a bit of a handful at times." A soft voice came from behind me and I turned around to find a tanned, beautiful woman wiping her hands on a tea towel. She turned her head to gesture towards the wrestling boys and I caught sight of three large claw marks on the side of her face.

"You must be Emily." I said, holding my hand out to her. She smiled, shook her head, and pulled me into a hug instead. It was warm and it reminded me of my Mum's hugs when I was little.

"Yes, and you're Scarlett, my Embry's mate. It's so nice to finally meet you." She said warmly, pulling back to grasp my shoulders and look me up and down like a family member would do to see how much a child has grown.

"It's nice to meet you too, I've heard… well, not as much about you as I'd have liked." I shrugged and she laughed, making me laugh too. I already felt comfortable around her.

"Mercy! Have mercy!" We turned at the sound of one of the teenagers shouting. Embry had the yelling teen pinned to the ground while the other was lying a few feet away, laughing hard at them.

"Embry, let up on those two, they still have homework to do!" Emily called and the two boys groaned loudly.

"Aw Emily, I'd rather Embry beat my ass than have to do Algebra!" The teenager being pinned down by Embry yelled.

"Stop cussing or you'll have to do Algebra _and_ have your ass kicked by me." Embry threatened playfully as he got up.

"How come you get to cuss and we don't?" The one on the floor by himself whined as Embry helped him up.

"Because I'm older than you, and I said so." Embry told them, pulling the taller teen into a headlock and ruffling his hair.

"Man, I feel sorry for your future kids." The boy in the headlock grunted as he kicked and whirled his arms around, trying to get free.

"Boys, stop tousling. Breakfast is ready." Emily called over to them and the two boys immediately made a break for the door but Embry pulled them back, wrapping an arm around both of them and walking them over to Emily and me.

"Before you go and eat poor Emily out of house and home, I have someone I want you to meet. Colin, Brady; this is Scarlett." He introduced me and the boys looked at each other before letting out a round of wolf whistles and cat calls.

"Does that never get old?" I asked Embry, blushing at the boys.

"Nope, never." Colin smirked and Embry slapped the back of his head. Brady shook my hand whilst Colin rubbed his head and winked at me, then artfully dodged another smack from Embry.

"Ignore them, they're the youngest of the pack and the most annoying." Embry explained.

"Don't tell Seth that, he'll get more annoying just to beat us." Brady warned Embry sarcastically.

"Yeah, and we're not the youngest anymore, at least we won't be soon." Colin added and they both stepped away from Embry, nodded at me, and ran towards the house. Emily just laughed and followed at a slower pace.

"Well, that was - interesting." I laughed to myself as Embry took my hand and led me into the house.

"Hey, you wanted to meet the pack babe, be prepared for feeding time at the zoo." He chuckled and I wrapped an arm around his waist.

"So, future kids, huh?" I teased, poking him in the side. He wrapped me in his arms in the doorway and looked me in the eyes sincerely.

"Well yeah, I'd never really thought about it before but if you want to then I definitely do." He smiled down at me and leaned down to kiss me sweetly. I just nodded and returned the kiss, causing him to smile hugely at me.

"Hey lovebirds," a voice shouted from the kitchen, "the food's going cold and we're not allowed to eat until you get in here."

"So get in here!" Another voice yelled. I giggled and followed Embry into the kitchen.

I sat down in between Embry and Emily and watched in fascination and a little horror as I watched seven ravenous wolves snatch food off the table faster than a cheetah can run. Emily just sat there with a cup of coffee and a smile on her face as she watched them like they were all her children. I glanced at her with my eyebrows raised and she just shrugged, reaching forward gracefully and grabbing the last blueberry muffin a split second before five different hands snatched at empty space on the plate.

"Here honey." She handed me the muffin and squeezed my hand gently before going back to her coffee.

"No fair!" Colin grumbled as he attempted to steal a piece of bacon from Sarah's plate.

"Try it and die, boy." She said without looking as she reached over for a piece of toast.

"How did you know?" He sat back in his chair and looked at her with a confused expression.

"I'm god."

"More like the devil." Brady muttered under his breath before he took a bite of eggs.

"Ow!" Colin yelled as Sarah slapped him on the back of the head.

"Suck it up you big baby." She rolled her eyes and grinned at me as Colin flipped her off behind her back.

"What was that for? I didn't say it!" Colin glared at her as she shrugged.

"You're within striking distance, not my problem if you're too dumb to sit this close this early."

"You know, she makes sense." Paul said from the doorway as he leaned against it.

"See honey," Sarah continued to Colin, ignoring Paul completely, "as dumb as you are for sitting next to me, you should make it your life dream to never be as moronic as _him_." She jerked her thumb in Paul's direction and he just grinned back at her.

"Dare we ask why?" Embry asked, nudging me towards the muffin which I had yet to touch. I put it on his plate and took a piece of bacon off of his. He raised his eyebrows at me but I just put a piece in my mouth and made a love heart with my hands and he shrugged in defeat.

"Because Embry dear, and you'd do well to remember this too, only complete morons walk into the room of a pissed off woman without proper protection on his assets. Unless he's not too bothered about ever using it again, that is." She took her time staring each male in the room down and they all cringed away and covered themselves in turn. Leah, Emily and I just smirked.

"She forgets that I'm not afraid of her." Paul crossed his arms and grinned at her, oblivious to her anger.

"He forgets that I know how where Emily keeps her emergency shot-gun." She said, completely calm. Paul's eyes widened slightly before he turned his attention to Emily.

"You own a gun, Em? You badass!" He winked at her and she just shook her head at him.

"For protection against burglars and wolves who keep winking at me." She shot him a dangerous look over her coffee cup.

"Gotcha. Now what's for breakfast?" He pulled a chair over and squeezed between Embry and Quil, grabbing a plate and some food.

"Shouldn't you be on duty?" Sarah snapped at him, obviously trying to blow his head up with her mind.

"Cool your jets, Jared took over about ten minutes ago." Paul winked at her with a mouth full of food.

"But why do you have to be _here_?" She practically hissed at him and he just shrugged.

"Because your shining attitude towards me always makes my day, baby."

"Bite me."

"Love to." He winked at her and she threw a slice of toast at him which he caught easily and ate within seconds.

"Asshole." She muttered under her breath.

"Do you even remember why you were so mad at me?" He asked, and everyone in the room turned to look at Sarah as she glared at him.

"Because you're a douche, who needs another reason?"

"She got mad at me because I saw an old friend from high school and we had coffee together."

"That you slept with!"

"I did not!"

"Oh please, you'd screw anything that has a pulse."

"Hey!" He looked offended.

"Okay fine, you _did_ screw anything that had a pulse."

"You're just bitchy because I knew her longer than I know you."

"And you slept with her."

"Did not!"

"Which friend?" Embry asked, subtly trying to diffuse the situation.

"Carla."

"Hot Carla?" Embry asked, very interested now. Sarah and I locked eyes and I nodded at her look. I picked up my fork and jabbed him in the side.

"Ow, what was that for?" He whined, rubbing his side.

"Because hitting you with my hand would have done more damage to me than you, and you deserved it." I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow at him until he mumbled a 'sorry'. I smiled and patted his arm.

"Whipped." Seth muttered, and then jumped as Embry kicked him under the table.

"You know this girl too, Embry?" Sarah asked and Embry quickly back-peddled.

"Um, well you know, I guess I, we kinda know, I mean it's compli- he slept with her!" Embry pointed his finger at Paul and looked relieved as Sarah stopped staring at him.

"Traitor." Paul muttered and punched Embry in the arm.

"So?" Sarah said, staring pointedly at him, this time Paul looked sheepish.

"Okay yes, once, in Senior year. But we were really drunk and-"

"I don't want to hear it."

"She's-"

"No."

"But she's-"

"I said shut up Paul." She snapped at him.

"Carla's gay now." Embry spoke as Paul opened his mouth again. "Actually, she came out of the closet a week after they slept together." The entire table burst into laughter.

"You turned a chick gay?" Brady had tears streaming down his cheeks as Paul turned red and threatened to jump over the table and beat him to the ground.

"Well, this makes things different." Sarah informed Paul as she sipped her juice.

"You know, I should be mad at you for doubting me." Paul glowered at her as the boys continued to laugh like hyenas.

"Call it evens?" She suggested, he nodded and they both stood up and practically ran for the door together.

"Where are they going?" I asked Embry quietly and he wrapped an arm around me and pulled me close.

"To get privacy for… relations." He winked at me and I nodded my head in understanding, trying to force the mental images out.

Soon after the wolves had stopped laughing, they finished eating and piled into the living room to watch TV. I stayed behind in the kitchen to help Emily clean up and even though Embry went into the living room with the others, I knew he would be at my side in an instant if I needed him. The thought was very comforting.

"So, how's it going?" Emily asked softly as she washed and I dried the dishes.

"Pretty good, I feel so much closer to him now." I noted and she nodded.

"After the shock and fear passes, the connection you share becomes a lot closer."

"You were afraid too?" I whisper, hoping Embry won't hear me because I know it'll hurt him.

"You'd be stupid not to be. You're other half turns into a furry death-ball for god's sakes." I giggled at her imagery.

"That's true, but I still just see him as the cute guy I met in England. I've never even seen him in his wolf form." I said and she nodded sympathetically. We continued to clean in silence for a while but my gaze kept slipping over to her face.

"If you want to ask, ask." She told me quietly and turned to look at me, her expression was solemn but her eyes were inviting me to ask.

"Were you involved with some kind of giant fork wielding psycho or is it just really good horror movie make up?" Apparently my brain filter decided to malfunction at that moment. Thankfully she giggled instead of being upset.

"Not exactly, but I like the way you think." We giggled together for a while as we sat down with a cup of coffee each.

"So what did happen?" I asked softly, both of us watching the people in the living room to make sure we weren't being overheard by nosy wolves.

"Sam and I had just begun dating and we went for a walk, whilst there we got into a fight and he just got too angry and snapped. He turned and…" she gestured to her face. I just stared at her wide eyed and a little horrified. "It wasn't his fault, he just lost control."

"Do all of them lose control like that sometimes?" I whispered, a little concerned but she just smiled and shook her head, putting her hand on mine.

"Sam had just recently discovered what he was and he was the only one so he didn't really have anyone to learn from. All the wolves, Embry especially, take great care to keep a lot of control around their imprints. He'd die before he hurt you."

"I know he would, it's just taking a lot of getting used to, this whole wolf thing. I was only just getting used to our relationship." I confessed, it was nice to be able to talk to someone about my fears. Kim was great but she'd been in love with Jared for years before he'd fallen for her so when she found out about him, she hadn't really cared that much so it was nice to talk to someone who understood what I was going through.

"I know exactly how you feel sweetie, after everything happened I didn't even see Sam for a long time, I needed to adjust to everything. You're doing much better than me." She took a sip of her coffee.

"I love him Emily, but I don't know how to be a…" I trailed off, not knowing what to call it.

"A wolf-wife?" Emily offered, smiling. I nodded.

"Yeah, exactly. This is probably the longest relationship I've ever had and even though I love him more than anyone, this whole soul mate thing scares the hell out of me."

"Of course it will, you two are together for life now, it's not really something you can walk away from but you still have free will. You can walk away if you really want to. Do you want to?" She asked gently and I thought really hard.

She was right, I could still technically walk away and be the independent person I'd always been. I could go back to England and set up my own business and never think about men turning into wolves again. But then I realised that I really didn't want to. I wanted to be with him and I wanted us to be together.

"I'll never walk away, he's all I want. And I want to be with him forever." I told her, completely sure of my decision. I guess I'd never properly thought about it until now, not about forever anyway.

"Good," I whipped my head around to see Embry leaning against the doorframe, watching me. Emily smiled and excused herself from the room, Embry took her seat and kissed me softly, "Forever sounds great to me."

**A/n. Okay, so I didn't realise that it'd been so long since I had written and I have been informed by certain friends that exams are not an excuse, so I wrote you guys an extra long chapter and now I'm on study leave, I'm going to try to write more. Promise! Peace guys and I hope you Brit readers are enjoying our great weather, although I think I may melt if it gets any hotter. Peace :D**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	14. Chapter 14

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 14

"What about this one?"

"Nope, too small."

"There's two of us, how much room do you need?"

"Babe…"

"Okay, okay, you turn into a giant wolf, I get it. So what about this one?"

"No way!"

"What's wrong with it?" I threw my hands up in exasperation before flinging the housing section of the newspaper at his head, which he caught with perfect ease. Jerk.

"It's on the fifth floor." He replied, looking at me as if that was the most obvious answer in the world.

"So what?"

"So what if I have to get to the pack quickly, a person jumping from a fifth floor might raise a few questions." He grinned.

"But it has a beach view!" I whined, fully aware that I was seconds away from stomping my feet.

"Baby if you want a beach view, why don't you just go with my idea and we'll get a tent…" He trailed off at the look on my face, "No? Okay then, but we can't have that one."

"Then you pick a place for us." I sighed in frustration. Embry raised his eyebrows briefly at me before looking over the paper. I drummed my fingers on the table as he looked, mostly because I knew it annoyed him and the childish part of me really wanted to piss him off.

"How about this, two bedroom house, one bath, spacious kitchen and large back yard." He pushed the paper towards me and I saw a sweet looking house surrounded by trees and flowers.

"It looks amazing, but can we afford it?" I asked, gazing in wonder at the house.

"Sure we can, I mean I've got savings for a deposit and you've got your fancy cooking degree so I'm sure you'll find one of those high rise jobs." He winked at me and I gave a short, sarcastic laugh.

"In LaPush? And it's a _culinary_ degree." I pointed out.

"Pot-ay-to po-tah-to, and okay fair point. But we'll still have two incomes when you find a job babe." He put his hand in mine.

"Yeah, if they ever decide to give me a visa." Over the past couple of weeks I'd applied for a working visa but so far I'd just been ignored, even though I'd called them countless times.

"Well there is another way…" He whispered, leaning closer to me and kissing my nose.

"Pray tell." I retorted, still very sarcastic but Embry, wisely, ignored it.

"You could marry me." I burst out laughing.

"Are you asking?" I giggled but stopped suddenly at his dead serious, if slightly hurt, look.

"Do you want me to ask?" He asked, his voice lowering a little.

"Um, I don't know. Eventually, of course, but…"

"Well, why not now?" He asked, this time a bit more excited.

"I… because you haven't even thought about this. There isn't a ring or anything." I tried to justify it.

"Actually…" He ran upstairs as fast as his long legs would take him and I tried not to have a heart attack, he was back down in moments, before I even had time to think, "I've been carrying this around since we got here. It was my Grandma's."

He opened a black velvet box to show a delicate silver ring with a sapphire in the middle surrounded by tiny white diamonds. I couldn't even speak as he dropped to one knee, holding out the ring to me as I gaped.

"I know it's sudden, and very fast. And I promise I won't be offended if you say no… much. But I love you so much and there's no one else for me, you're it. You're the reason I get up in a morning and come home safe for. My mom used to quote famous philosophers all the time in the hopes I'd actually listen and turn into a genius overnight. But this one quote from Aristotle always stayed with me, 'Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies', and Scar, you have my heart _and_ soul. It would really mean the world to me if you'd marry me?" He finished and looked at me for a moment before enveloping my hand in his and raising it to kiss my palm.

"Yes." I choked out, my throat tight from unshed tears. His head snapped up, his expression hopeful.

"What?" He asked, almost doubtful.

"Yes." I said again, this time with more conviction. The smile he gave me could light up a city as the picked me up and swung me around, laughing all the time.

"You said yes, you really said yes!" He half- muttered, half- laughed to himself. I giggled and nodded along with him, he set me down to put the ring on my finger but it stuck half way, Embry looked up at me sheepishly.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, my Grams was freakishly small. I'll get the resized like lightening." He grinned before capturing my lips and swinging me around again and again.

**A/n. Hey… please don't shoot! I know I haven't written anything in so long and you've probably forgotten about me and I don't blame you if you stop reading this story. I'm so sorry but I just haven't been feeling it, I couldn't figure out where this was going and I hated that. In the mean time, I've finished school, gone to Paris, come home, decorated and moved into my new room and a whole bunch of other things. I do have my plot sorted out now though… mostly. I'd love it if you'd read and review but I totally understand if you've completely lost interest in this story and hate me forever. I deserve it! **

**Anyway, hope to hear from you.**

**Peace**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	15. Chapter 15

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 15

"Okay, okay let me see your lists." Alice practically squealed and Emily looked just as enthusiastic. Jacob had convinced Embry and me that we needed 'Alice the leech', as he affectionately called her, to help with our wedding. I was secretly glad of the help although I'd never admit it to Embry who is obsessive with me not getting attached to a vampire. It's kind of hard not to like Alice though.

"Here." Embry said gruffly, I knew he was enjoying this in private, the whole wedding thing, but he liked to play it up for Emily just because she'd started to bribe him with cookies if he cooperated. Sell out.

"So we've got; Jake, Nessie, 'vampires I guess'," Alice imitated Embry's voice perfectly and tutted but continued with an eye roll, "Paul, Rachel, Jared, Kim, Leah, Seth, Collin, Brady, Emily, Quil, Claire, Billy, Sue, Charlie and Quil Sr. Is that everyone?" Alice asked and Embry nodded quickly. I glanced at Emily and by the look on her face we'd both noticed a missing name but I decided not to push the matter. For now.

"So that's twenty-three people. Not very many," she muttered under her breath but loud enough for all of us to hear, "Scarlett, lets see your list." I handed it over reluctantly. Emily and Alice both snatched it to look.

Silence.

"Um, Scar? There's only one person on this list." Emily said hesitantly, as if I was crazy.

"Well Embry wrote down all you guys. Liam's the only other person I want there." I explained, feeling almost guilty for not having more people. Embry grabbed my hand and squeezed it reassuringly.

"But- but what about family? Other friends?" Alice asked, incredulously. I shook my head.

"Nope, no family. Well, I guess my Aunt Lisa but she's very against leaving England, she's a little insane." I shrugged while Emily and Alice gaped at me.

"What about your mom, your da-"

"Look, it's Scarlett's choice who she does or doesn't invite, okay?" Embry practically growled, effectively cutting Alice off. I smiled and squeezed his hand in a silent thank you.

"I don't have a Mother and my dad isn't really in my life." I explained quickly to them both. Alice, as a little saviour, quickly changed the subject.

"Okay then, well we should invite one more person to make it a round 25. That's kinda cute actually, an intimate wedding of twenty-five. Yes, that's perfect and then we can have the head table with the bride, groom, best man, maid of honour and whoever walks you down the aisle- oh! You'll definitely need to get someone to walk you down the aisle! And the place settings can be…" Alice's voice faded into white noise as I rubbed my temples, wearily watching Emily and Alice plot the smallest wedding there ever was.

"Well, it seems we need to invite another person." Embry told me quietly, rubbing his thumb along my knuckles soothingly. I laughed sarcastically and looked at him.

"You already know who the twenty-fifth person is going to be." I said seriously, Embry didn't quite catch on straight away.

"Who exactly?" He asked, chuckling quietly at my stern expression.

"Well, we can't leave Emily without a date." I said casually, watching as his expression turned from happy to confused to angry all in about 2 seconds.

"No, no way." He growled and I shrugged, rubbing my stomach as I started to feel kinda sick.

"Yes way." I argued with him.

"Not in a million freakin years." His voice was low and dangerous but I wasn't backing down.

"Scarlett, what do you think about these flowers?" Alice asked, shoving a catalogue under my nose.

"This isn't over." I whispered to Embry before immersing myself in wedding plans, ignoring my fiancé's smug grin as he thought he'd won our little argument. Think again.

"I'm so tired, I think Alice broke me." I moaned as I crawled into bed later that night. I felt so exhausted, not only had she forced me to look at millions of magazines, she'd then dragged me to multiple florists, dress shops and cake shops. And I didn't even get to eat any cake! After the fifth bitchy cake decorator, though, I managed to convince Alice that I wanted to make my own wedding cake. I missed baking so much.

"Haha, well get prepared babe, it only gets worse from here." Embry laughed as he walked into the bathroom. His laughter stopped short as he stared at something inside the door.

"What's up?" I asked, sitting up in bed. We'd recently moved into our own little cottage that was perfect for us. The rent was cheap and there was three bedrooms, that I was kind of hoping would be filled by children eventually. Wait, children. Oh no.

"Uh, babe? Please tell me a magical fairy brought this pregnancy test into the bathroom as a practical joke." His face was drained of blood as I scrambled out of bed and snatched the test from the counter on the bathroom and held it behind my back.

"Well with the werewolves and vampires, I wouldn't be surprised if fairies did exist." I tried to joke, apparently I wasn't born to be a comedian.

"You took a pregnancy test? I mean, are you-?" He trailed off, looking half scared, half… excited?

"No, I got it out but when I was about to take it, I realised we were going to be late for Emily's and so I kind of just forgot about it. Oops?" I laughed nervously, watching his reaction carefully.

"But you think you might be… you know?" He asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

"The word is pregnant, Embry, it won't turn you into a girl if you use it. Neither will the word period, while we're on the topic."

"Okay, okay, let's play Embry's such a baby later. Do you think you're pregnant?" He hesitated before the last word but I ignored it and nodded slowly.

"Well, I'm almost a month late, and I've been feeling weird lately. I just don't know." I told him and he nodded in understanding.

"I think you should take the test." He suggested and suddenly I was filled with dread.

"Okay, but you'll stay right here? While I'm taking the test." I asked, almost afraid of the answer. His face softened and he stepped towards me, kissing my lips lightly and wrapping me in his arms.

"I'm not going anywhere," he kissed me again, "ever." He added with conviction. I nodded and walked into the bathroom. A minute or so later I called Embry into the bathroom after I'd washed my hands and placed it on the counter. We sat huddled together on the floor, counting the seconds.

"I meant it, you know." He said quietly as we waited.

"Huh?" I asked, turning my head towards him to see a small smile and a very loving Embry.

"When I said I'm not going anywhere, I meant it. I don't care if it's positive or negative, I'll be here with you every step of the way. I always knew we'd start a family, I just never thought it'd be this soon," he laughed a little, "but then, we've always done things the fast way, right?"

"Right." I said, kissing him tenderly before whispering how much I loved him which he told me right back.

"I think it's time." He whispered, pecking me on the lips once more and I froze, filled with fear all over again.

"Will you look. I can't." My voice was barely audible but I knew he heard me because he knelt up and took that stupid life changing stick from the counter and looked at it. Then he picked up the box and read that for a few moments before looking back at the stick. And then back at the box.

"For god's sake! What is it?" I cried out in frustration. Embry slowly turned to face me and a brilliant smile slowly spread over his face.

"I'm going to be a daddy." He whispered, smiling impossibly wider.

"What?" I gasped. His eyes snapped to mine, bright with excitement.

"I'm going to be a dad. It's positive. It's positive!" He yelled, dropping the stick and scooping me up and twirling me around, raining kisses on my face. I laughed at his enthusiasm, getting caught up in his excitement.

"It's really positive?" I asked, and he bent to pick up the test, showing it to me while I was still in his arms.

"Yes! We're going to be parents Scar," he pressed his forehead to mine, "you're going to be a mommy." He whispered to me, staring into my eyes as I started to choke up.

"I'm pregnant, we're going to have a baby." I cried, tears running down my face. Embry set me down on the bed and took my face in his hands.

"This is something that you want, right? I mean, it's your body and I'll support you, whatever you choose, but-" I stopped his rambling with my hand over his mouth.

"Of course I want this, I can't wait." I whispered excitedly and with that he scooped me back up and twirled me some more.

**A/n. So I was going to make this chapter way longer and way more dramatic. But this just popped into my head and I thought they deserved a couple of chapters of pure happiness before I totally ruined their lives again, I really am evil. Just a couple more chapters I think, then an epilogue. Kinda sad that this is starting to end, I've fallen in love with these guys. But don't think that there's no more excitement, believe me, this is tiny compared to the storm that's coming. :D thanks to **Dreamcatcher94 **for reviewing, much love. I'd really love a couple more reviews but that's cool, I'd write this anyway. I've got the next chapter all planned by the way :D shouldn't be long… hopefully.**

**Peace**

**Writer-Of-Randomness**


	16. Chapter 16

**Mr Pretzel**

Chapter 16

**A/n. Before I start, I just want to apologise for how long this chapter has taken to get here. I kept meaning to but life just got in the way, with my job and school and my two new baby cousins, cute and demanding. I also went through a phase where I lost touch with my writing side, I just didn't think I was a very good writer. I still ****don't****think I am but oh well. I promise I'm back on it like sonic though, I shall try and get another chapter posted before my birthday (a week away, eep!) **

**I just wanted to say thank you to anyone who has stuck with me and is reading this now, it means the world to me, thanks. **

_Previously..._

"_Yes! We're going to be parents Scar," he pressed his forehead to mine, "you're going to be a mommy." He whispered to me, staring into my eyes as I started to choke up._

"_I'm pregnant, we're going to have a baby." I cried, tears running down my face. Embry set me down on the bed and took my face in his hands._

"_This is something that you want, right? I mean, it's your body and I'll support you, whatever you choose, but-" I stopped his rambling with my hand over his mouth._

"_Of course I want this, I can't wait." I whispered excitedly and with that he scooped me back up and twirled me some more. _

I stared at myself in the mirror, my shirt lifted partially up as I examined my stomach. I was barely showing but I felt like a balloon. The wedding was only two weeks away and I was starting to panic, I didn't want to look like a beached whale.

"You look great." Emily told me as she walked in with two cups of tea and handed one over. Since I got pregnant, I'd cut out all caffeine and, being the supportive friend, Emily had volunteered to cut it out too.

"But what if my wedding dress doesn't fit?" I whined, knowing I was being annoying, but also knowing that I could get away with it because of my pregnancy hormones.

"I already altered it with extra room, unless you suddenly blow up in two weeks then I think you'll be fine." Emily reassured me, trying not to laugh at me. Embry and I had decided not to postpone the wedding since we found out we were having a baby two months ago. Our wedding was small so it wasn't too hard to organise, and we'd had Alice and Emily, wedding guru's, so I barely had to lift a finger.

"I wish you'd reconsider the venue." Alice half-grumbled from the sofa, rifling through her plans once more. Alice had wanted us to have the wedding at her house, much like Nessie's parents had, Embry wasn't so keen on that idea.

"Well I like it." I told her firmly. We'd decided to host our wedding in Emily's vast backyard, with a small ceremony under a rose arch and then the reception outside, with appropriate shelter of course, it was La Push after all. Embry wasn't too happy about this idea either, but seeing as I got pretty crabby because of the pregnancy, he decided he valued his reproductive organs too much to argue.

"Thank you." Emily said quietly as she helped me into my gown so she could make the finishing touches, Emily's wedding present to me was my wedding dress and it was beautiful. It was ivory lace, strapless and absolutely gorgeous. It was fitted to my waist before it flowed down to my feet in soft waves and ruffles.

"What for?" I asked her, confused as she started to pin the hem of my dress.

"For getting Embry to agree to having Sam there, it means a lot." She told me, looking me in the eye. I squeezed her shoulder comfortingly.

"Embry loves him, even if he won't admit it. This is my wedding day, I don't want to look back on it with regret, and wish I'd done something different." We shared a smile and she continued with my dress. Over the past couple of months, we'd become close like sisters. She'd even helped me pick out colours for the nursery and sat with me in the hallway and shouted orders at Embry and Quill as they painted. I was banned from entering the room as the fumes could be bad for the baby.

"I still think you should at least have a better honeymoon." Alice told me, bringing me back to the present and reminding me that I should have been listening to her.

"I hate flying, we can't be too far from the pack and we've both never really been there. What's not to love?" I asked rhetorically. Originally we were planning an exotic trip to a foreign country, but the pregnancy complicated that. I was slightly terrified to leave the country, just in case there was complications and I couldn't get home to Carlisle, who was my doctor and took care of me, even Embry couldn't dispute that. Instead, we'd decided to spend a week in Seattle, exploring the city, although knowing my soon-to-be husband, we probably wouldn't leave the hotel.

"But it's boring!" Alice whined and I laughed.

"Then be grateful it's not your honeymoon." She stuck her tongue out at me and went back to her magazine, occasionally holding up a flower arrangement for me to comment on. Alice had been a godsend, somehow guessing what I liked before I even knew it myself. She made it easier for me to concentrate on the baby rather than letting me become Bridezilla.

Embry, however, had without a doubt been the most helpful and attentive since the night we found out. He'd accompanied me to each doctor's appointment, holding my hand and sharing in the excitement when we saw our child on screen. He'd even got up at 2am to go fetch me a pepperoni and peanut butter pizza that I was craving, even though I'd fallen asleep by the time he got back.

My favourite part of my pregnancy so far was waking up last sunday morning to find Embry, with his head laid lightly on my chest as he rubbed my belly gently, whispering his love to our unborn child. He'd kissed my stomach before moving up to kiss me. For the first time in my life, I was completely and utterly happy.

"It's done." Emily announced, pulling me back into the room. Both her and Alice had obviously noticed that I had been spacing out as they snickered when I blinked a couple of times, bringing myself back to reality.

"It's beautiful Em, thank you so much." Stupid hormones had me with tears in my eyes as I hugged her tightly.

"You look lovely." A voice sounded from the doorway and I turned to see Sam watching me and his wife. I smiled gratefully at him.

"Thank you, I should really be getting back home, I think Embry's attempting to make dinner and we all know how that's going to go." Sam chuckled slightly under his breath and Emily just rolled her eyes.

"I'll give you a ride home if you like, I have some errands to run anyway." Sam offered and I accepted gratefully. He walked out to wait in the truck as I changed from my dress to my jeans and jumper.

"I'll see you tomorrow, don't forget we're finishing table settings." Alice reminded me and I nodded obediently, hugging both of them before I called my goodbyes on my way out.

"Ready?" Sam asked as I hopped in the cab and pulled my seat belt on, I nodded and we set off.

"You really did look beautiful." Sam commented after a minute of silence. I beamed at him and patted his arm in thanks.

"Just try not to let Embry see it in your mind when you're on patrol." I joked and he smiled sadly.

"Embry tries his hardest to stay as far away from me and my mind as he can." Sam told me and I could hear the pain in his voice.

"Things still aren't better?" I asked softly, I thought they'd been getting along, but looking back I saw that they were being civil for only mine and Emily's sakes and very few words were shared between them.

"He hates me, I thought maybe he would forgive me one day. I'm losing hope." Sam didn't look at me as he said it, instead he stared out at the road.

"He'll come around, no one stays mad forever." I tried to reassure him but he ignored me.

"I'm just trying to protect him. I don't know what more I can do." He sighed, lowering his head slightly. We sat in silence again for a few moments before his head lifted, like he'd had an idea. The car sped up a little.

"Uh, Sam? I don't want to tell you how to drive, but you missed the turn." I pointed out but he still didn't look at me.

"I'm not taking you home just yet." He told me quietly and alarm bells started to go off in my head.

"Sam, let me out of the car. I can walk." I tried to reason but he shook his head, a look of determination on his face.

"I need your help Scar, if I show you then you can help me." He wasn't making sense and I was starting to panic.

"If you let me out of the car, then I can help you." I spoke to him in a soft voice, he was acting crazy.

"I'm not going to hurt you Scar, but I need you to trust me." He glanced at me and the pleading look he gave me was enough to admit defeat.

"Okay." I whispered, relaxing in my seat. Sam nodded his thanks and we sped towards the border of out territory.

"No one knows this is here and no one can find out. Do you understand me?" He asked and I nodded, getting a little nervous at his tone. We drove down a winding road to a small house and parked just outside. Sam turned to me and looked me in the eye.

"She's not dangerous, trust me, but stay close to me, just in case." He contradicted himself with his words but I nodded anyway. Sam got out of the car and I waited for him to get to my side before I opened my door, he helped me out and grabbed my hand.

"Should I be scared." I asked hesitantly as we walked towards the door.

"Most people would be, but considering what you've been through, I think you can take it. I wouldn't have brought you otherwise." He squeezed my hand reassuringly before knocking on the door.

"Leave." A voice growled from inside the tiny house and I jumped a little next to sam.

"Tiff, it's me." Sam said simply before pushing the door open, to my surprise there was no lock on the door, and it opened easily. Sam led me to a small living room where a woman sat crossed legged on the sofa.

She was pretty for sure, a timeless beauty. She looked in her thirties, with long flowing black hair, flawless russet skin and chocolate brown eyes. Eyes that I recognized instantly. I frowned for a second as my brain put the pieces of information together.

"I know you!" I gasped, my eyes wide as I stared at her. Of course I knew her, how could I not? Her picture was hanging in my living room. I knew almost everything about her. She was Embry's mother!

**A/n. Dun dun dunnnn! Again, I am so sorry about your wait! I am writing the next chapter right now, I promise! For real this time! Thanks again for taking time to read this, and for sticking with me.**


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